


Thunders In My Heart

by ExistentialMalaises



Category: Chilling Adventures of Sabrina (TV 2018)
Genre: Brief reference to Nick/Sabrina/Prudence, Drinking, Multi, Polyamory
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-27
Updated: 2019-02-07
Packaged: 2019-09-12 23:09:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 33,356
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16881021
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ExistentialMalaises/pseuds/ExistentialMalaises
Summary: After choosing the Path of Night, Sabrina learns all there is about the witches' ways.





	1. The Wintertide Solstice

**Author's Note:**

> I was not going to write this, but then the TV-show keeps poly-baiting me (damn them!), and my heart can't take it. 
> 
> A special thank you to my personal enabler and generous beta-reader, yourcrookedheart!  
> Thank you for your enthusiasm and encouragement throughout <3

**1**

“I know I’m not supposed to be here...” Susie said out of breath, and Sabrina had to fight the urge to tell her old friend that she wished things were different. Things _were_ different. And moving on was a part of that, after the decisions Sabrina had made. “But I didn’t know where else to go.”

“What’s wrong?” Sabrina closed the door to her house, and moved towards the wooden porch railing. Glancing around the snowy trees for a second, she made sure they were alone. As alone as she could be at the Spellman residence.

Susie neared Sabrina again, and explained the trouble she and her friends had gotten into at Baxter High, trouble that now endangered the WICCA-club Sabrina had built. Sabrina listened thoughtfully, ideas rushing through her mind, ideas to help her old friends out, but she was not supposed to interfere with mortal affairs. Not anymore. Her fingers skimmed the handrail, and dark green flecks of paint chipped underneath her touch, making the wood come undone. Sabrina was never one to follow the rules… But things were different now. She had signed away her name in the Book of the Beast, and navigated the Path of Night. That course of action, and all the power she gained with it, came with strict rules and grave consequences.

Maybe Sabrina could bend the rules a little.

Returning to Baxter High was not what she had expected. Everything looked exactly the same, yet mortal life had continued on without her. Of course it would. Wandering through the hallways of her former high school, Sabrina observed the familiar faces, even of those she hardly knew. There was a new principal who seemed to execute matters disappointingly similar to the way principal Hawthorne had. The obnoxious jocks still ruled the school even after she had taught them a lesson in the mines. And now her old friends were suffering again. Maybe it was time for another lesson. For all involved. The corner of her mouth quirked up as she gave birth to a delicious idea inside her mind. Turning the corner of a hallway, Sabrina stopped dead in her tracks when she was confronted with the image of her ex-boyfriend, the first boy she ever loved, hovering over one of her closest friends. Some things had changed… and Harvey seemed to move on just fine without her. Sabrina instinctively curled her fingers around the necklace Harvey had given her, then felt a warm hand on her shoulder, and caught Susie’s hesitant stare. Sabrina smiled, shaking her head, shaking away the image of Harvey removing Roz’s glasses to kiss her, and continued walking. This time with a little more strut in her step.She was there to save the day after all.

 

***

 

Only a few days until Christmas, Sabrina thought when she entered the library at the Academy of Unseen Arts. Her mind still at Baxter High. She did not celebrate the holiday at home with her aunts and Ambrose, but she had with her friends. And with Harvey. They would all have hot chocolate at the local cafe on the day itself before everyone had to run off and be with their families. Each year the cafe would look bolder than normal: the red walls and drapes matching the green and golden glittery decorations. And everyone would be warm and fuzzy as they exchanged their gifts, and opened them one by one. Harvey would always walk her home after, often kissing her senseless, telling her how he would much rather spend his time with her if it weren’t for Tommy.

 _Tommy_. Guilt settled in the pit of her stomach, and it reminded Sabrina that she needed to move on. She would not get to celebrate Christmas anymore. She never had been able to do so with her parents, with her mother, so having that moment with her friends… when the rest of the mortal world spent it together with their families… it had been meaningful to Sabrina. But she was not supposed to form or nourish any meaningful relationships with the mortals anymore.

Well, maybe one.

Away from the lights, purposefully hidden in the back of the library by one of the least visited shelves, Sabrina fingered a row of thick books nervously as she waited for Nick to make his appearance. After her last dip in the necromancy pool, perhaps this was not the smartest idea… but it was not the same thing. And she really needed this. Her aunts would understand.

“Sabrina…” Nick whispered when he invaded her personal space.

She stepped closer, lowering her voice too. “Do you have it?”

“Told you I would…” Nick removed a folded paper from the notebook in his hand, and showed it to her. She reached for it, but he retracted his hand, drawing it behind his back as he leaned closer to her face. A look of concern on it, not amusement. “Are you sure you want to do this?”

“Yes.” Sabrina raised her eyebrows, insisting he give her the paper. “It’s not a resurrection spell.”

“Doesn’t mean it can’t do damage,” Nick said, bringing the folded paper between them once more. “And I don’t want you to get hurt.”

Sabrina nodded, indicating she understood his motivations. She was willing to take the risk. So she might hurt a little. Maybe. A little bit of hurt did not outweigh the chance to speak with her mother. It would be fine. “I won’t get hurt.” She took the paper from him, and placed it neatly inside her notebook.

“Are you doing it here or at home?” Nick leaned against the bookshelf.

“Home. I don’t want to get expelled.”

Nick quirked a brow, his usual mischievous look returning. “So why come to me?”

“I burned some bridges at home. Ambrose wouldn’t hear any of it.” Sabrina raised her shoulder, not ridden of the earlier guilt she felt, but she was doing her best. She was learning from her mistakes. “And I haven’t seen much of Ms. Wardwell since… everything went down.”

“A last resort.” Nick shrugged himself off the shelf. “You really know how to make a guy feel special.”

A figure appeared at the start of the shelf. Cassius, the librarian, was giving them an annoyed stare. “This is a library. Could you two please hush or leave?”

Grinning to each other, Sabrina and Nick dashed out of the library, which earned them more unappreciated commentary from Cassius. Once they slowed down in the main hall, Sabrina turned to Nick again. “Were you fishing for compliments?”

“No.” Nick adjusted the strap of his shoulder bag, then peered into her eyes silently. “Maybe.”

Sabrina fought another smile. “You’ve been there for me, Nick. I appreciate that. And this too.” She lifted her notebook, then put it away in her bag. “Lunch?”

 

**2**

Staring at herself in the oval mirror in her room, Sabrina repeatedly chanted the incantation Nick had given to her a few days ago. “Oh, spirit, Diana Spellman. Hear my plea. Manifest in my sight. I summon thee. Come into the light.” With all the lamps off, she was cast in shadows. A ring of candles flickered on the wooden floor. A ring of candles meant to guide her mother home, to make her find her way to the light. To Sabrina. It took some time, but Sabrina waited patiently for her mother to appear behind her, the chanting and her hushed voice unwavering. “Oh, spirit, Diana Spellman. Hear my plea. Manifest in my—”

A dark shape came into Sabrina’s sight in the mirror, and her eyes widened. It was working. She immediately swung on her heels to face her mother, but the figure that had materialized inside the circle of light did not resemble her. Nothing like the few photographs she had of her mother, nothing like the blonde woman she had seen on her Dark Baptism. This figure did not even resemble a person, just a shadow silhouetted into a body. “Mom?” Sabrina tried, the mistrust apparent in her voice.

“Mom, is that you?” Sabrina tentatively stepped forward. “It’s me… Sabrina.” She pointed at herself while her other hand moved into the pocket of her pants, reaching for the salt she had hidden there if this summoning would go south. As if on cue, as if the spirit knew what she was doing, a cold wind swept into the room through the closed windows and the candles went out.

Covered by darkness, Sabrina stiffened on the spot, the hairs on her neck standing up, now that her sight was impaired. This was not how it was supposed to go. Her arm jerked when the obscured figure seemed to step outside of the circle, shadows moving among shadows, prompting Sabrina to throw salt towards it, shouting from the top of her lungs. “Salis ex mare protego hanc domum. Purgo illud, et prohibeo mal— _Oohh_!”

With the blink of an eye, the dark figure surged towards her, shoved her against the wall, then evaporated through it.

Her head was thudding, the pain seeping in easily. Sabrina lowered herself to the ground, needing a second for the loud thumping in her head to lessen. As she tried to find some comfort, it was instantly suppressed by more pain. Sabrina groaned softly and looked at her hand. A piece of glass had gotten into it. From the mirror on the wall. Now shattered on the floor. “Shit.” She found a cloth near her desk, and extracted the shard from her hand, deep red blood flowing down her fingers. Wrapping the cloth around her hand to stop from bleeding, she set out to find whatever spirit she invited into her home.

If only things went right for once.

 

***

 

The next day Sabrina waited by the statue of the Dark Lord in the main hall. It seemed like the roles had switched around. This was happening more often. Sabrina waiting for Nick. She had not noticed it before, it had never bothered her before, not until Prudence had pointed it out a few days ago. Only a few weeks ago she was rushing out of the Academy to be with her old friends, but now she lived here during the week… only to return home on the weekends. “Nick, can we talk?” Sabrina asked when Nick strolled into the main hall, bag strapped around his chest, hair slicked back neatly.

He stopped in front of her, a small smile playing on his face. “Morning. Hope your weekend was more exciting than mine.” Sabrina dipped her head, responding to his veiled comment about the summoning. Exciting was one way to describe it. She waited for some students to walk past them, before she could continue the conversation, when Nick noticed her anxious stare. “What is it?”

“Something went wrong with the incantation you gave me,” Sabrina said with a hushed tone. 

Nick gestured to the corner of the main hall with his head, and together they walked into the shadows. “What happened?”

“I don’t know exactly.” Sabrina replayed the moment in her mind. “I think I invited the wrong spirit into my house. It kind of attacked me. Definitely not my mom.” Sabrina showed her hand, the one with the cut. She had managed to heal the wound after finding a spell book of aunt Hilda’s, but she could not get rid of the scar… of the proof. “But luckily my aunts are away for a few days.”

“Because of the winter solstice?” Nick asked, and Sabrina nodded. “What about your cousin?”

Sabrina shook her head, wishing they could get to the part where he would help her out. “He doesn’t know.”

“How does he not know you’ve got a spirit on the loose?” Nick asked, drawing his thick eyebrows together in amusement, the lines on his forehead showing.

Concentrating on her fingers, making sure she was not being fidgety, she gave a shrug. “Honestly, I don’t know.” Did it matter? Ambrose had not found out yet, and she would prefer to keep it that way. “But I’m not about to stir up a hornet’s nest.” Sabrina said, which got her a smirk from Nick. At least someone was amused by this whole situation. She was pretty certain Ambrose would not be. Her aunts _definitely_ would not be, not after everything that had gone down. “Besides, I don’t know if the spirit’s aim is to do damage… otherwise it has had plenty of time to do so. But I can’t be sure. _You_ said this incantation was the real deal.”

Nick lowered his head, not at all affronted by her subtle accusation. “It is. Did you pronounce everything correctly?”

“Yes,” Sabrina said, the indignation carrying through that one word. Of course she did it right. Based on all the instructions she had gotten from _him_.

“Your mother’s name too?” Nick asked and instead of replying verbally, she nodded to his redundant question this time.

“Does your mother have a common name?”

Sabrina nodded again, trying to follow his train of thought. “Diana…”

“ _Just_ Diana? Mortals…” Nick said, no noticeable derision in his voice, but there was another tilt of his head that made her wonder what else he thought of mortals. So far he had only said nice things, polite things, in polar opposition to his peers.

“You’re saying—”

“You summoned the wrong spirit.” Nick concluded thoughtfully, providing her with the errors of her way, but still not a solution. “Alright. I need to get access to the book first. Give me a few hours.” Sabrina nodded, reassured that they could figure it out together, that she would not have to go to her aunts or Ambrose about this. They could still fix it before anyone would have to find out. “I’ll meet you at your house.”

Heels clacked on the staircase they were standing next, and both Sabrina and Nick instantly fell silent, glancing at who was coming down. “What are you losers up to?” Prudence said, walking in front of her sisters.

“Charming.” Nick returned his eyes on Sabrina, and began to back away. “I’ll see you _later_.”

Prudence stepped aside as Nick moved past her, the two sharing insincere smiles. “Aw, Nicky can’t take the heat today?”

Sabrina sighed, too tired to outwit her friend and foe today. She had barely gotten any sleep last night. A real downer when there was a possible ghost on the loose. “Not now, Prudence,” Sabrina said, hoping Prudence would shine through as a friend today, and not a foe. 

“No quip? I’m mildly disappointed.” Prudence said as she admired her darkened nails and took Nick’s spot, Agatha and Dorcas not far behind. “Cat got your tongue?”

“Just… a spell gone wrong.”

“Sounds about right.” Agatha scoffed at the remark, and Sabrina could feel the blood rushing to her face. Just because she was tired, it did not mean she would not come for them if they insisted.

“Agatha,” Prudence snapped at her sister, and Agatha rolled her eyes behind her, but refrained from speaking. “ _Anything_ we can do to help?”

This was not a matter that Sabrina wanted them involved in. “No, it’s alright. I’ve got—”

“Nick… on the job.” Much to Sabrina’s dismay, Dorcas decided to join the conversation too. They were already taking up too much time. Sabrina had to hurry back home to ensure the spirit would not be causing… anything, really.

“Yeah, so I should get—”

“On Nick?” Prudence asked.

“Get _to_ _it_. It referring to the job. _Obviously_.” Sabrina glanced away for a second, lifting her eyebrows at the remark. “Cover for me in class?”

Prudence raised her shoulders with a coquettish grin. “What’s in it for me?” Agatha crossed her arms, her expression far harder than the others. “And me?” Dorcas’ voice fell in line with her sisters. “And me?”

“Pretty sure I saved all of your lives.” Sabrina placed her hands on her hips, both annoyed and amused with the conversation. Somehow the Weird Sisters always managed to bring out both emotions out of her at the same time, ever since the mines. “Several times.”

“You also killed me,” Agatha said, shooting daggers at her.

Sabrina dropped her hands. _That_ was a wrongdoing she already paid the price for, already got crap for from everyone. She did not need to keep hearing it. But she could not say that to Agatha. She knew that. “ _Once_ , but I brought you back immediately.”

“Poorly.”

“Anyways, _fine_. I’ll owe you.” Sabrina crossed her arms, her figure mirroring Agatha’s. “Only you.”

 

***

 

The house was completely silent. Not a soul in sight, except for Sabrina and Nick who drifted in a circle at the main entrance, in front of the stairs. With a burning smudge stick in one hand and a dark feather in the other, the two murmured a cleansing incantation. Whiffs of sage, cedar, and camomile wreathed upward, infusing the air with an aromatic smoke that transformed into a soft yellow blanket like the pollen of the used florets.

After cleansing her home, they returned to her bedroom, the place where it all began, for their next step. Revoking the invitation. She connected her hands with his to form a physical circle. It was a sacred space that would allow them to harness their energy, but underlying tension crackled between their fingers when they intertwined. He locked his eyes with hers, his molten browns seemed much darker when he concentrated on his magic, and she narrowed hers. Getting her head in the game. A surge of power flowed from them and pulled taut inside their circle as they echoed the words Nick had found in his mother’s Book of Dead, “Spiritus ignotum. Praecipio tibi ut discedo loco hoc!”

It seemed like hours, but it had only been minutes, when Sabrina felt her hair sticking to the sides of her face, and noticed a droplet of perspiration run down Nick’s. Her breathing had grown deeper, their incantation softer, but finally the dark figure emerged into her room. It was an invisible pull, through the power of their words, that dragged the figure back. It resisted when it was near them, but eventually it could not withstand them, and the silhouetted shadow was sucked into their circle until it evaporated in front of their eyes. But… Sabrina could have sworn that she saw an emotion somewhere in the darkness of the figure. She saw suffering. It left Sabrina with an eerie sensation. The spirit had not done anything malicious, not caused any problems. Maybe it was confused when it hurt her. Maybe she should have first—

“That was intense,” Nick said as he released her hands and wiped the sweat from the side of his face.

“Yeah.” Sabrina focused on him again, and she suddenly felt very tired. But most of all relieved. “I’m just glad Ambrose didn’t find out.”

“Wouldn’t want you to get into trouble,” Nick said, his jaw twitching with the final word. 

She smiled, pushed her sticky hair behind her ears, and nodded. “Me either.”

“Guess I should get going…” Nick walked to her desk, where she had placed his bag and jacket. “Who is this scary white man?” He glanced back at her over his shoulder, and pointed at the Santa Claus wax figure that she had removed from her Christmas box and placed on her desk out of nostalgia.

Sabrina snorted at his wording. “Oh, that’s Santa Claus. An important figure for Christmas. The—”

“Mortal holiday. Right. I’ve heard about that. Never celebrated it, of course. Or any of our own holidays, for that matter. My family… we’re not very festive,” Nick said indifferently, and grabbed his things, not putting on either one. It was far too hot inside now. She would have to open the windows. All the windows, so her aunts and Ambrose would not wonder why the whole house smelled like she had performed a cleansing.

“Well… you should. It’s really nice.” Sabrina peered at Nick, who still had not made any real attempt to leave her home. She supposed she should let him know she was grateful for his help. “Maybe I could show you how. Over a milkshake?”

Nick smirked, tilting his head, and drawing closer to her. “Make it a hot chocolate, and you’ve got yourself a deal.”

“Hot chocolate with marshmallows!” Sabrina smiled to herself, maybe she could still sort of celebrate Christmas. It would not be the same, but different could be good too. “I know just the place.”

“When do the mortals celebrate it?”

“The 24th, but that’s still a few days from now,” Sabrina added immediately. She did not want to run into her old friends at Cerberus Books in case they continued the tradition without her. Why would they not. And it was the only decent coffee shop in town. _Somehow_. “Mhmm, but we could go tomorrow? We’re free anyways.”

“Alright…” Nick stepped closer, slowly tilting his head, holding her stare as the tension reappeared between them. Then he turned to the door. “It’s a date.”

“Friendly date!”

With a chuckle, he opened her bedroom door. “If you insist.”

 

**3**

Adding some finishing touches to her look, Sabrina carefully traced her lips with a deep red lipstick. A matte one. She would not take the risk of it coming off amidst the drinking. She pressed her lips together one final time, and took a step away from her mirror so she could appraise herself before she headed out the door. A pretty black headband, worked into her curled hair, was part of her look on most days. Her red off-the-shoulder top was smoothed into a fluffy black mini skirt. Black boots that reached just underneath her knees would keep one part of her legs warm, and her long winter coat would the other. She considered wearing something lighter, something not red, so she would not clash with the wacky interior design of the coffee shop, but this was her favorite look. So clashing it was. After a final twirl, Sabrina hopped down the stairs. She quickly placed some wet food in the dispenser for Salem, in case he did not feel like hunting, said goodbye to her aunts, then found Ambrose perched on the railing of their porch. As he usually was.

“Where are you off to all dolled up?” Ambrose asked, closing the laptop that rested on his legs.

“Meeting a friend.” Sabrina did not want to tell him who it was. Ever since she walked in on the… orgy that occurred in Ambrose’s room, one that Nick had been a part of, she really did not know what to say about it to either Nick or Ambrose. But at least Nick did all the talking there if it got brought up. With Ambrose, Sabrina imagined the conversation would go slightly different. It would be more awkward. Definitely not something she wanted to think about. “Shouldn’t you be heading inside? It’s going to get colder.”

“I’ve got my tea to keep me snug.” Ambrose smiled as he sipped on his tea. “What’s your excuse, cousin?”

Sabrina backed away from the house, from this conversation, flattening her hands over her winter coat, then burying them inside her pockets. “Hot chocolate.”

“Hm. Off you go then.” Ambrose said, giving her a lopsided grin while he gestured her away with his hand.

Letting out a deep breath, Sabrina turned on her heels and made her way into town. There was a slight bounce in her walk. She was more excited about this than she thought she would be, but it had been a little over a month ago when everything had gone down, and she had not done anything social like this since. It had been school during the week, and weekends at home. School. Home. School. Home. And although she socialized at the Academy, it was not in the same way as she had done in her mortal life. Witches and warlocks did not do much of the same stuff. They did not care for cinemas, book clubs were not a thing, and just hanging out without furthering a goal… _unlikely_.

Ambrose had been right in saying that she would feel like she would truly belong in their world as a full witch. She did. But he had not told her how lonely belonging could still feel at times. She needed more. Maybe this would be the way to get it, by introducing her friends to some mortal activities—one by one, so they would be more willing. Ambrose had also told her she would want to forget the parts of her mortal life, but he could not have been more wrong. They were painful, it was true, but she would never want to forget them. They remained a part of her.

So, Sabrina opted for a different approach.

 

***

 

“Oh, you’re early,” Sabrina said when she found Nick standing in front of the coffee shop sans his usual shoulder bag. Hands inside the pocket of his dark pants, eyes only on her, not giving mind to the passersby who stared at them.

“As are you.” Nick opened the door to the coffee shop, and waited for her to enter. She smiled, the tacky Christmas songs already reaching her ears. Oh, she loved them so much.

Finding a good seat was surprisingly hard, the place was more crowded than what she was used to during the week, but they managed in the end. She scooted down next to him on the two-seater sofa, though she kept a bit of distance between them. It would be silly to sit on a chair on the other side of the table when the sofa was fine for the two of them. Yet this felt so intimate. And familiar. Just not with Nick. She showed him the menu, and he canted towards her, his arm draping behind her frame, resting on the winged backrest of the sofa, and tension settled itself in her limbs.

“What do you recommend?” He glanced from her to the menu. If he was aware of her sudden hypersensitivity, he did not show it.

She handed him the menu, letting him have it all to himself, and tried not to rest her back against the couch. “Hot chocolate with marshmallows. It’s a classic for Christmas. Otherwise the hot chocolate with whipped cream and Maltesers is also really good.”

“You’re a sweet tooth? Cute. I’ll take a classic,” Nick said with a smile as he put down the menu in front of them. She cleared her throat, nodding at him, and telling herself to act natural. Being weird was not any fun. “So, the scary white man. Tell me more about him.”

Sabrina could do that, obviously. She was about to speak when Dr. Cerberus came around to ask for their orders. As soon as he left, Sabrina started explaining the origin of Christmas and Santa Claus, how the Christians stole a lot of the traditions from witches—which got her a laugh from Nick, telling her that did sound like mortals. She agreed. There was no denying certain historical hardships when the witches still lived openly among the mortals—and how capitalism turned it into the holiday it was known as today. Nick listened thoughtfully, making remarks here and there as he scooped the partially-melted marshmallows from his big cup and into his mouth, only to nip on the hot chocolate after.

Coming to the end of her long lecture, Nick reached his conclusion. “Christmas sounds a lot like… the horror stories the elder witches and warlocks bring up during the Winter Solstice.”

“I suppose in a way it is.” Sabrina could not deny their history. “But mortals aren’t that bad. Us witches and warlocks aren’t the greatest either.”

“That’s very true.” Appeased with his answer, Sabrina was reminded of another thing Nick had told her a few days ago. “What about your family? You don’t celebrate the holidays?”

“Not really.” Nick shifted his weight on the plushy sofa. “They’re usually not around. My parents are often away on business. They are emissaries of our coven, and so they’re required to do a lot of their work on location.”

“Oh, that must be rough, but it does explain why I haven’t seen them around yet.” Sabrina leaned against the backseat, no longer minding his arm there. “What about your sister? You’ve told me you have one.”

“She doesn’t visit often.”

“Do you have a good relationship with her?”

“Yeah, I do.” Nick looked behind her, his fingers scratching the soft fabric of the sofa. “I just wish she came around more. Home without her is—”

“Lonely?” Sabrina nodded with understanding. She was not the only one dealing with similar issues. Not in this world. “I get that.”

Nick grinned, glancing back at her. “But I spend most of my time at the Academy anyways. Plenty of people around. It’s fine.”

“It’s also fine to want more,” Sabrina said, placing her hand on top of his on the table, giving it a soft squeeze. Nick slowly fluttered his eyelashes, his eyes steady on hers, but his hand turning underneath hers, so their palms connected. An underlying current returned… like it had when they cast out the spirit from her home. 

“‘Brina?” Harvey’s voice came from behind her, and Sabrina jerked her head towards him.

Letting go off Nick’s hand, she tried to put on a neutral face. “Harvey, uhh… hey.” Harvey briefly looked at Nick, who gave him a wave with his fingers in return, and seemed to be at a loss for words. “What’re you doing here?”

“Getting a coffee before I head to the mines...” Harvey muttered, his eyes roaming over the table, to their finished drinks, then to her neck. Her necklace. The one he had given her. “What about you? Is… this a date?”

“No. It’s not.” She blurted out the words, not daring to take her eyes off of Harvey, not wanting to see how Nick responded to that. He knew it was not a date. She had told him that. But she still did not want to see it. “We’re just friends. I don’t move on that easily.”

A look of hurt crossed Harvey’s face, his eyes downcast for a second as he nodded, and guilt took hold of her. She should not have said that. She did not mean to hurt him. She had been the one who had ended things with him… the second time around. He was safer this way. It was better this way. She had other business to take care of. Dark Lord business. “Can we talk… in private?”

“I don’t think that’s a good idea. We were leaving, anyways. Sorry.” Sabrina grabbed her purse, and looked at Nick for support, who stretched his arms without a care.

Standing up, he said, “Halfway out the door.”

 

***

 

The walk back to her house, something Nick insisted he had to do, was quiet. Her mood had been affected after running into Harvey like that. This was not what she wanted. She had been nice to him at their high school. Civil. Even to Roz. But that did not mean she was not hurting, and apparently she wanted Harvey to feel a little of what she felt. But it was not fair to him. She knew that. It was not right. Then why did she have to feel this way?

“Do you want to know about my favorite story from the winter solstice?” Nick spoke when her house came in sight. Sabrina nodded, turning her head towards him. “In ancient times, when there was no electricity, the darkest days lasted longer, and light was only a fleeting moment of simulated safety. On those days, man would have to face not only its own nature, but also a deadly evil.” Nick raised his eyebrows, his voice laced with amusement at the happy expressions Sabrina was offering him as he told her in graphic details how a group of young men were driven to insanity then torn to pieces one by one. Frosty delights were not for all.

“That’s gruesome. I love it,” Sabrina said after he finished.

“Thought you would.” Nick smirked, and she smiled widely back at him.

Raising her shoulders, she lowered her voice. “Nothing like a good slaughtering to get the blood flowing.”

“You’re so morbid.” Nick laughed again, and her smile turned into a grin. One of pride. The guilt and pain over Harvey far from her mind. “Thank you for the hot chocolate, by the way. You shouldn’t have.”

Sabrina stopped walking when they reached the stairs that went up her porch. “It was my pleasure. It was fun.”

“It was.” Nick put his hands in the pockets of his jacket, and came a little closer. “So… entertaining horror stories aside, I did some reading of my own about the Christmas rituals, and it seems that one of the more important ones today is the exchanging of presents.”

“That’s right.” Sabrina said while Nick removed a small black gift box from one of his pockets. He handed the box to her, the object soft to her touch. “What is this?”

“A Christmas gift from Santa Claus, the scary white man.”

Sabrina laughed, shaking her head. But then she opened the small, black box and her eyes went wide with shock. Blinking a few times, she stared at the gleaming silver earrings inside the gift box. Green water drop stones hung from the top. Definitely vintage. Definitely her style. “Wow, Nick! _You_ really shouldn’t have. I don’t have anything in return.”

“It was my pleasure. A silver-haired birdie told me that Christmas is about giving, not getting.” Nick said as a sly smirk grew on his face. “Though I wouldn’t oppose a gift myself. I’ll accept whatever form you’re offering. Barter. In kind. In nature.” Sabrina gasped playfully, and gave him a little shove. He stepped backwards, throwing his arms up in defeat or innocence, she was not sure either one of those was true. But she could not stop from smiling, and she could tell he was trying not to laugh. “Alright, alright.”

Frowning after their amusement wore off, looking more serious, she shook her head at him. “These… look really expensive.”

“Hm, I read mortals give each other weird items like socks. That seemed a little redundant. I wanted it to be something nice after everything with the summoning spell.” Nick shrugged, not waiting for an answer. “Anyways, I’m loaded. My parents are. So think nothing of it.”

She bobbed her head. Thinking nothing of it would be hard. “Thank you, Nick. It’s more than nice. It’s really thoughtful and lovely. I don’t know how to thank you properly.”

“The look on your face was enough.” Nick took another step backward, and she smiled widely. “I’ll see you in class. Merry Christmas.”

“Bright Solstice, Nick.”

Rushing to her room, Sabrina shrugged off her long coat and mittens, then found her mirror again. She took out the sparkling earrings, admiring them for a short while, then tried them on. The silver complemented her hair nicely. And the green…it was an unexpected color, but she was into it. As she smiled to herself, the faint twinkle of her necklace caught her attention. Her fingers caressed the jewelry gently, from the amulet all the way to the clasp behind her neck. After unfastening the chain, she opened her desk drawer, placed her necklace inside… and closed it. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! Comments and kudos are appreciated.  
> Find me on [Tumblr](https://existentialmalaises.tumblr.com/).


	2. The Stirrings of Spring

**1**

A snowy blanket befell Greendale, its accompanied cold bearing into the rooted bones of the small town, while pale sparkling lights glistened during the longest and darkest nights. It was a time like no other at the Academy, everyone’s focus was heightened and their mischief increased as the veil between their world and that of the Dark Lord was at its thinnest. The connection to him never felt stronger. Then, on one particular night, the blackened sky was saturated with the smolder and flashes of colorful fireworks when the mortal world celebrated the start of their new year. A time for festivities in both worlds, one of many things they had in common, even if both sides were oblivious to its shared foundations.

Sighing to herself, Sabrina balanced a pencil between her fingers, unknowingly ticking the point and plunger on her notebook… much to Father Blackwood’s annoyance, who asked her to stop. Despite his controlled tempter, his vexation showed. He was a rather vexing man, so Sabrina did not let it bother her. She did put down her pen though, especially after receiving looks from her fellow classmates. Neutrality from Nick, his face as unreadable as his mind. Annoyed confusion from Prudence. More daggers from Agatha. Always daggers from Agatha. At least Sabrina knew what to expect there. Dorcas smiled before focusing on her writing again. And Sabrina… well, she was kind of bored. If only the Academy had a longer holiday period. She could use a two-week break like they did in the mortal world. Maybe she could muster up some concentration again for classes like herbalism. Truly more aunt Hilda’s corner of the world, not Sabrina’s. But even if she wanted to slack off, her frenemies made sure she did not.

Nothing fueled Sabina’s fire more than wanting to beat others.

And their attitudes gave her plenty of firewood.

But not even that could not get her though this class, not right now.

Fortunately she did not have to suffer through it for too long, since lunch came around soon enough. Fortunately for Father Blackwood too, Sabrina imagined. She did secretly enjoy making his life a little harder, and getting away with it. She did not normally revel in such things, but she was happy to make an exception for him. Especially after his daughter ended up at the Spellman residence, something Sabrina would never have expected. But aunt Zelda had explained that Father Blackwood wanted nothing more than a son, even at the expense of a daughter, and Prudence had reiterated it with a distant sadness in her eyes. It made Sabrina dislike Father Blackwood. Not that she needed more reasons.

Around the crescent tables in the the Great Hall, Sabrina was seated together with her friends. If you can’t beat them, join them. That proverb always spoke to Sabrina. Growing up a half-witch in a mortal world, she did not believe it applied to her. But the last few months showed her differently, and so she changed her attitude. A little. She was more than willing to play dirty, Sabrina thought with a smile as she glanced around the table and stabbed her meat. The Weird Sisters chatted animatedly amongst themselves, and Nick kept catching Sabrina’s amused stare, only to respond by making faces whenever Prudence or Agatha or Dorcas said something entirely ridiculous. Chuckling softly to herself, Sabrina slowly worked towards consuming her greens.

“Did you know that?” Prudence’s voice became louder. “Hello? Hell to Sabrina?”

Sabrina turned her head away from Nick, and nodded. “Of course I did.” Prudence gave her a skeptical look, which was entirely deserved because Sabrina had not been paying attention to a word she had said. Not really. But she was never in a million years going to admit that.

“Then how did—” Prudence began, naturally not ever letting anything go, but Nick caught her off when he stood up with his tray in hand.

“I’ve got places to be,” he said.

Dorcas leaned closer, smiling mischievously. “Sure you do…”

He smiled back at her, then turned his attention to Sabrina. “Are we still meeting later for our conjuring project?” She nodded, and he said his goodbyes.

Agatha ducked her head and began to speak in a hushed tone. “Finally, I was waiting for him to leave. Have you heard already?”

“Who hasn’t,” Prudence said, and waved her hand in the air dismissively. 

“I was surprised you didn’t bring it up in front of him.” Dorcas bit her lip.

“Too easy,” Prudence said, her words appearing as blank as her face, but then she smiled to herself. “Just like him.”

The Weird Sisters laughed in wicked synchronicity, each one of them amused by their little joke, and not caring whether Sabrina was the third wheel or not. _Fourth wheel_. She was missing Nick’s presence already. “What are you talking about?” Sabrina asked.

“Oh, I stand corrected.” Prudence quirked an eyebrow, and leaned towards her sisters too. “Looks like there _is_ someone who hasn’t heard.”

“Of course it’s Sabrina. She tries her hardest to never get involved in anything,” Agatha said, and Sabrina wanted to object to that, but she still was not sure what it was that she would be objecting to.

So she repeated herself instead. “What are you talking about?”

“Your boyfriend,” Dorcas answered Sabrina, yet somehow failed to enlighten her.

“He’s not my boyfr—”

Prudence rolled her eyes slowly, back to being bored with the conversation. “He hooked up with Alistair.”

“Wait, what?” Sabrina put down her fork, eyes wide and confused.

“You know…” Dorcas lingered, but Agatha gladly rubbed it in. “They fu—”

Sabrina’s face flushed with an emotion she could not quite place. “I _know_ what it means.”

“And here I thought you were hard of hearing,” Agatha said with a smirk. 

Prudence shrugged, a small grin playing on her face. “Maybe it’s her mortal side.”

“Ugh.” Sabrina’s silver locks flared away from her face when she shoved the pew she was seated on backwards without physically moving, her powers and anger taking over. The deliciousness now in her bloodstream, and detectable on her tongue. She stood up and grabbed her tray, specific ideas on how to torture the Weird Sisters running through her mind.

Choosing not to take the bait, she began to walk out of the Great Hall when Prudence’s voice carried through towards her. “Aw, these buzzkills. What’s wrong with them?” With a wry smile Sabrina flicked her head towards the Weird Sisters as she continued walking out the doorway, and their trays of food and liquids slammed against their bodies, tarnishing their pretty little dresses and ruining their mood.

Like they had hers.

 

***

 

Flipping through her notes on demon conjuration, something she only dabbled in for fun when people deserved it, Sabrina willed herself to focus on her project and not on how to send a malicious demon to haunt the Weird Sisters. It was a project she was working on together with Nick, and their deadline was coming up soon. Only a week from now. January seventeenth would come too soon, and they would be screwed if she did not keep her head in the game. Maybe she could multitask. Maybe they could change the topic of their project to demonic hauntings. It could become her new speciality. She was an open-minded girl.

“You’re being strangely quiet…” Nick stirred her from her thoughts. He closed his notebook, and twisted his body towards her. Sabrina put hers away on the desk. “Something wrong?”

“Hm? No. Not really.” In the end, it was not the Weird Sisters who Sabrina was upset with. They had hardly said anything she cared about. Except for that one thing. That sort of threw her off. Nick had given her this valuable gift to her over Christmas, in monetary value… but mostly in emotional. She thought their relationship had evolved. She wore the silver-green earrings almost every day, always making his smirk soften into a smile when he caught sight of them. So she did _not_ understand. “I didn’t know you were also into guys.”

“Uhh, yeah…” Nick tilted his head, his eyebrows drawing together at the change of subject. “You do remember when I participated in an orgy at your place?”

Sabrina replayed the very visual image in her head. Ambrose coming to mind again. She shivered. “I’m trying my best to forget.”

“There were guys there. Are you not ok with me being into men?”

“Yeah, no, I know. And I’m totally ok with it. Don’t get me wrong.” Sabrina could feel her face flush from embarrassment. Of course she was ok with it. That was not at all what she was trying to get at. Trying to ease into the topic at hand was not working for her. “I just… It didn’t register with me.”

“And why did it now?”

Sabrina straightened herself on the chair, unease in her body not just because of how wooden it was. “Because I heard you hooked up with Alistair.”

“Oh, word travels fast,” Nick said to himself pensively. 

“Apparently not as fast as you,” Sabrina blurted out, and as soon as she caught his surprised eyes she knew she should not have. What was wrong with her? Why was she sabotaging herself like this, and hurting someone she cared for in the process? That was the problem, maybe. She cared for Nick, more than she had been willing to admit. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean that.”

He shook his head, not coming up with words like he usually would. “Not the first time I heard that. Just wasn’t expecting it from you...”

“I shouldn’t have said that. I didn’t mean it. I swear.” She wanted to reach for his hand, fire up that underlying connection they had whenever their fingers touched, but this was not the right time for that. 

“Then why did you?”

“I…” She sighed. Fuck it. “I thought we had a thing going.”

“By this thing do you…” Nick brushed his fingers through his hair in thought, black locks falling in his face, and she held in her breath, unsure of his words. “Do you mean how you continuously get close to me, then push me away and keep me at a distance? And how you clarify to both me and other people that we are just friends? Because that _thing_ has been very confusing.”

“No…” Sabrina wanted to tell him he was wrong, how she did not mean to do any of that, but that might have been even more mortifying. “I thought you were into me.”

Nick leaned back and chuckled. “I _am_ into you… but we’re not together. And that’s not because of me, so what I do in private is my business,” Nick said with a cool tone, but she could not keep her emotions from showing on her face. This was not something she was used to. It had been so different with Harvey. He was enamored with her from day one, had eyes only for her from day one. Now it seemed both Harvey and Nick had no problem moving on to other people. Just like that. When she furrowed her eyebrows, Nick scooted closer to her and grabbed her hands, drawing her eyes back to him. “Wait, look, Sabrina. I really like you. And I want to explore that, but it has to be a two-way street. I’m down with sharing, but I won’t play second fiddle if I give this love thing a try. I want more. I want to matter.”

A two-way street? She thought it had been, but maybe it had not. After a moment of silence, she assented. “Ok. I hear you. I just need some time to think.”

“Alright… I’ve got transfiguration class.” Nick started collecting his papers and pens, putting them away in his shoulder bag. “Full moon tonight.”

 

***

 

Sabrina had ventured into town the night the mortals commemorated their new year, Salem not too far behind her, always ready to talk trash and hunt for snacks, and Sabrina had watched familiar faces light up their firecrackers, blissfully unaware of her presence. It was a nice moment. The blackened sky was smoldering with multicolored smoke and a kaleidoscope of sparkles, giving off a glow that seemed as otherworldly as magic must be to mortals. And Sabrina could feel their happiness rubbing off on her, but she only got to scrape the surface. She was no longer a part of it. She knew this, but it had not stopped her from going there, from wanting to engage yet never truly participating. Maybe she was doing that here too… with Nick.

Maybe he had a point.

Stirring in her bed, trying to figure out her next move, Sabrina decided to forgo thought. Fuck it. She had been too much in her head lately, way too much for her liking. She threw her blanket to the other side of the bed, and put on thick woolen socks underneath her white, lacy nightgown. Immediately reminded of the cold, she yanked her bathrobe from the hanger, and headed towards the—she could not walk into the boy’s dormitory. Here was hoping Nick was up working on his transfiguration homework. If she was not wrong, and she usually was not, then he would not have morning classes tomorrow. The moon only appeared for a limited amount of time per month, so the workload was unbalanced, but most definitely heavy. 

“Oh, good. You’re here.” Sabrina sighed, clasping her arms together when he looked up at her in surprise. She plopped down on the couch next to him, already dreading whatever could happen next. She really did not enjoy the tight knot in her stomach, not when she was putting her heart out there, not after being hurt and having to hurt.

“Hey. Couldn’t sleep?” Nick rubbed his eyes, the book in his lap falling between them on the couch. Next to them there were golden flames crackling in the fireplace that sent warm waves of comfort her way that would have lulled her into sleep had she been trying to study here. She made a mental note not to.

Turning her focus back to him, she shook her head. “I couldn’t stop thinking about you.”

“I would apologize for that, but I don’t want to.” Nick smirked and rested his head on the palm of his hand, his eyes awakening. “Our conversation troubling you?” She nodded, and Nick sighed, locks of his black hair falling in front of his eyes. Eyes she really wanted to see her, to be enamored with her, and to—“It’s fine, Sabrina. I completely get it if you’re not into me like that. All I would like is some clarity. This flirting that we do, while I love it, I want more. But if it’s not in the cards, then I can live with—”

Electric titillations licked at her fingers, pressing her for relish. Wetting her lips briefly, Sabrina just went for it. She pressed her lips on his, and was met with a silky softness she had never experienced before. His lips were very… present, and she had thought he would feel different from Harvey, but it was nothing like she could have imagined. There was so much warmth and softness. Feeling Nick tilt his head, he pressed his mouth against her too, reciprocating the kiss. It made Sabrina brush their lips together a little harder, the increasing caresses of his mouth quickly igniting all her other senses. And then came the slow slide of his tongue, followed by a nibble on her bottom lip, coating each other with saliva. Sabrina parted her mouth almost instantly, heat flaring up her body. Grabbing his face between her hands, their tongues connected. Traces of orange lingered on his lips, and she explored him further. She was quickly losing her breath, losing herself. Pushing her hand on his chest, and giving him a little shove, she stopped herself. Behind him soaring golden flames from the fire waned to a soft electric fizzle, and she pulled even further away from him. “Was that clear enough for you?” She meant to sound confident, but she was mostly out of breath.

Nick panted, smirking as he threw the book between them on the ground. “Crystal.” He leaned closer and pecked her on the lips, but she pulled back again.

“But I did come out of an important relationship a few months ago…” Sabrina began, so far he had been understanding about that. She hoped he would continue to be. “So I want to take this, _us_ , slow.”

“I can do slow,” Nick breathed, clearing his throat. 

Sabrina grinned now, theories running through her mind, theories worth testing. “You sure about that?” She quirked her eyebrow, and it got her another smirk.

Nodding his head again, Nick pulled her in for one more kiss, and this time she let him. With only inches between their bodies, his fingers roamed in her messy hair while his soft lips outlined her mouth with fleeting pecks, and when she parted her lips again… he stopped.

“You betcha,” he whispered against her mouth. 

 

**2**

The wintertide solstice had come and gone, and at a languid pace the chill etched its way for the stirrings of spring. Light white flakes of snow thawed a little more every new day, unveiling the vernal freshness of the land underneath. Songbirds spread their wings and shared their measured hymns with the world, which would get them splattered to death within mere minutes at the Academy. Their joyous and free spirit were the perfect ingredient for invocations of ancient mystical powers at this time of the year. In honor of it all, and to continue bettering their conditions, the coven gathered at the Church of Night for their annual celebration. Tonight, in fact.

“Another witch sacrifice?” Sabrina asked Ambrose, the memory of Feast of Feasts too fresh in her mind. Images of cannibalism too. She was ready to give an exasperated look to her aunts, who were gathered along with her and Ambrose at the breakfast table, for having lived this way for far too long, without objecting to any of it. 

“No, not this one.” Ambrose waved his hand in front of his head. “A lamb. Well, multiple.”

Sabrina stared at her aunts, who nodded to what Ambrose was saying. “Lamb? Oh, good.”

“The Lamb slain from the foundation of the world,” Aunt Zelda recited, then put up the newspaper in front of her face while aunt Hilda fuzzed about at the kitchen counter.

“That’s very literal,” Sabrina said with a frown.

“And quite delicious,” Ambrose added.

Sabrina twisted her mouth into a smile. “I do like lamb.”

“Plus there’s a bunch of parties afterwards,” Ambrose said, bringing his tea cup to his mouth, a wistful smile playing behind it. Aunt Zelda jerked one side of the newspaper away from her face, observing the interaction between Sabrina and Ambrose. Sabrina smiled innocently at her aunt, who slowly returned to her reading. A party sounded like fun. It had been a while. A good while.

“Parties?” Sabrina mouthed to Ambrose, who mouthed back to her, “Soooo many.”

She made a mental note to look into that, but first she had to finish up her breakfast and head to the Academy. Traveling there on Mondays was usually fun, because she did so together with Ambrose. He worked there now. Sabrina did not exactly know what it was that he did, and Ambrose was vague about it, but it got him out of the house, so she was happy for him. As soon as they arrived at the Academy, Sabrina made her way to the girls’ dormitory. She dropped her luggage for the week, some party dresses added to the mix at the last minute, then read through her notes in preparation of today’s classes. The workload kept piling up, not to mention the dangerous creatures that entered her life on an almost weekly basis. It was as if trouble came looking for her, surely Sabrina did her best to follow the rules. Unless the rules were stupid. Then she could not be helped.

Classes ended early today. Everyone was required to change into suited apparel and head to the Church of Night where Satan would be praised and lamb would be the main course. She was still set on taking down the Dark Lord. Nothing had changed. But… tonight she was also going to party.Red lips. A little black dress, one that was covered with iridescent silver paillettes. It twinkled with every step Sabrina took. And she had the perfect vintage earrings that matched with it, ones that Nick always looked for. Overdressing was impossible with her coven. Cannibalism aside, this was a thing that she would never complain about.

 

***

 

The celebration went on well into the hours of darkness, when the witches and warlocks were most alive Sabrina learned. Alive in a different sense. A whole new sense. After making another twirl, she pulled Nick along with her to the crowded bar. The two of them had been dancing their night away inside a club she had not known about before this night. Smiles. Spins. Spirits. Not the supernatural kind, but liquid. Tonight was about discovering, about letting her hair down. After ordering two more shots of golden ambrosial delight, Sabrina kissed Nick on the lips roughly.

“Another one?” Nick raised his eyebrows, and dragged his white teeth over his plump bottom lip. She bit hers, nodding slowly… about to lean in again so she could feel his mouth on hers again when the bartender placed the drinks in front of them. “Cheers.”

“Come on, more dancing!” Sabrina yanked Nick by the arm after they drank their shots, bright-eyed and unable to stop smiling. The volume and tremor of the music was at its most intense when they were in the center of the dance floor, amidst bare bodies that swayed with one another.

Sabrina spun around on her kitten heels, filling her head to toe with sounds of music. And magic. Music was magical. The earth rocked beneath her, the stomping of feet crushing the floor, and she twirled again. Sounds drifted in an out of her body, ebb and flow. Nature. Music was nature. Sabrina sighed to herself, eyes closing. She was as free as a songbird in the early spring sky, roaring, trilling to the lyrics of a song she had never heard. Nick caught her between his arms, wrapping himself around her waist, and she laughed. Kissing him instantly, a purposeful clarity overcame her. Nick. She wanted him. Roaming her fingers through his hair, she bit his lip and found his tongue, letting heat of another kind overcome her. His hands lowered to the curve of her ass, his fingers pressing into her, and she had to have more. Reaching for—

More warmth pressed into her back, and Sabrina glanced over her shoulder to find Prudence grinning back at her. She pushed her warmth further into Sabrina, grinding into her and making her gasp. Sabrina turned around with an opened mouth. She was going to say something, but she did not know what. But then Prudence’s fingers were on her arms, skimming her long pointy nails over her skin, giving her goosebumps. And Sabrina found she really had nothing to say. Not if it would make Prudence stop. Prudence’s grin grew, and before Sabrina knew it they were kissing. Hot lips demanded immediate attention, her tongue not too far behind. A languid, deep slide that made Sabrina lose her breath so quickly. And maybe other things, like her common sense. But she did not care. Not right now. There was warmth all around her, and the low bass of the song thumped along with her heart, the three of them moving in unison. Sabrina could still feel Nick’s hands on her waist, merely resting there now, while Prudence was far more explorative.

She was prickling all over, filled to the brim with giddiness and desire, reveling in the attention that was given to her. To her body. But then Prudence stopped kissing her, and turned her sights on Nick, pulling him into a kiss. Their bodies pressed harder against Sabrina’s, no escape from their heat, as Sabrina watched Nick accept the kiss tentatively. His eyes on Sabrina’s, watching her watch him. Feeling a little at a loss, a bit of annoyance came over her. She liked this less, she concluded. It was better the way it was before. Wriggling between Nick and Prudence, she pulled them apart. First she gave a quick peck on Nick’s lips, then she glanced at Prudence. Prudence grinned, elongating her arm, and without thinking Sabrina took it. Prudence twirled Sabrina around, her back pressed against Prudence’s warmth again. Like it had the first time. Sabrina rubbed her ass against Prudence, her eyes fixed on Nick, who stared back with half-lidded eyes, desire written all over him. Laughter rang in her ear, then came a soft lick down her neck. Sabrina gasped, trying not to moan. Prudence had found her weak spot without any effort.

Her world started spinning, light in her head and light on her feet. There was nothing as freeing as this. Sabrina closed her eyes again, now not swaying as rhythmically as she had before, then felt Prudence’s nails dance on her body. Slow trails all over. When they found her breasts, she was pulled back into Nick’s arms. She hung on to him, her head against his collarbone, and frowned when her body felt heavier than it had minutes ago.

A distant, hazy chatter occurred. “I think she’s drunk,” Sabrina heard Nick say.

“So?” Prudence responded, sounding further away.

“She’s new to this.”

“Ugh. Fucking amateurs.”

Nick steered her to the side of the dance floor where the sound was not as loud. “Where did Prudence go to? That was _niiiice_.”

“I don’t know, but we should get you some water. Maybe something to eat?” Nick was glancing around him. The humid heat inside the club had transformed his usual slicked-back hair into soft curls that fell loosely in front of his eyes. 

“Ohh, I’m starving.” Sabrina assented, inclining her head and giving him a serious look. “I want _you_.”

“I mean actual food.” Nick said, smirking when she pecked him repeatedly. “Unless you’ve changed your mind and you’re into cannibalism now?”

Sabrina stopped kissing him. “No!” She pointed at his chest, poking him with her finger. 

He laughed, and started steering her again. “That’s what I thought. Come on.”

Leaning on his arm, Sabrina staggered out of the club, annoyed that she could no longer walk straight. Frowning to herself once more, she focused on taking a steady step at a time. Right leg. Left leg. Right leg. Left leg. Why was it so hard to walk? She was freaking flying minutes ago.

The cold air outside shook her down to her knees, making her teeth clatter, even with her winter coat on. She waited underneath the sharp shadow of a lamppost while Nick was busying himself with a vendor who sold drinks and greasy grub out of the back of his car.

“Are you sure this is not going to give us food poisoning?” Sabrina was clear enough to be suspicious of the food, no matter how many toxins were currently partying in her body.

“Trust me,” Nick said, and Sabrina made a noncommittal sound, but then started eating away as she sat down on the cool pavement, Nick next to her. She was growing more ravenous by the second. After finishing the greasy goodness, she swallowed down the bottle of water with big gulps. The cold all around her had stirred her drowsy senses awake, and with it her recollection of what happened in the last thirty minutes.

Sabrina cleared her throat, her mouth falling open. “I made out with Prudence?” She peered at Nick from the corner of her eyes, and he started to chuckle, nodding his head as he finished his bottle of water. “ _We_ made out with Prudence?”

“Well, definitely more you than me, greedy little thing, but yes.”

Heat surged up to her face, and she was certain it must have been red now. This was not how she thought the night was going to turn out. “I’m not into Prudence like that. I mean, she’s beautiful… but she’s such a huge bitch.”

Nick laughed loudly. “I don’t think the alcohol has worn off just yet.”

“Nope, that was all me.” Sabrina shook her head as she replayed what they had done, more surprised with herself than anyone. Surprised to have done such a thing. She did not mind it, but she just… did _not_ expect that was going to happen. What was Prudence even thinking? Was that her normal? Prudence had made it sound like Nick was the only one to sleep around. Tonight it painted her in a new light. Sabrina too, apparently.

Nick nudged Sabrina’s shoulder, smiling at her. “Greedy little thing, it was all you _all night long_. Alcohol or not.” Sabrina did not know what to say to that. But the corner of her mouth quirked up at the way he had said it, and she had to bite her lip to stop from smiling.

 

***

 

The next morning Sabrina woke up with a dry throat, immediately craving more water. Unfortunately, rushing out of bed did her no good, because everything seemed to be spinning for a second. Taking a few more, swallowing hard, she breathed through her nose, trying to become accustomed to… being awake. She rubbed her eyes, and glanced at her alarm. It was only six in the morning. She never woke up that early. This was pointless. But then she found a bottle of water on her nightstand, gulping it down without making the world spin. Forgoing life today, she crawled back into bed and closed her eyes once more. It was way too early, anyway.

Waking up a second time that day, Sabrina got herself ready. It had only been three hours later, but she felt a lot better. The world was not spinning anymore. She was less tired. And she could walk properly again. Being back in control of her limbs was great. Not that she was willing to do much today. Sabrina grabbed her toiletry bag and headed to the girl’s bathroom. A long, hot shower helped with soothing her muscles. She had danced without stopping last night. The only moments she had taken a break were when she was ordering another shot at the bar or chatting with people who were not Nick. _Speaking of_. He was not in the Great Hall, so she looked for him in the boy’s dormitory. She did not mind visiting during the day, especially the mornings, because that was less weird. Plus, it was not as crowded then.

“Hey sleepyhead,” Nick said, putting away his book when he saw her walk up to his bed. He was sprawled on it, neck bended and resting on the pillow against the headboard. He was dressed in his usual black attire, hair slicked back again, though his eyes did give away he had had a long night of drinking. A little bit of tiredness at the corners. It was endearing.

She climbed in bed with him, grumbling a little as she did. “Hm. Morning.”

“You feeling ok? Think you can eat?” He asked as he curled his arm around her shoulders, so that she was perfectly snug between his chest and hand. 

“Honestly, I’m a little nauseous. Can we stay here for a bit?” This was a good place to be at the moment, even with the nausea. He tightened his hold on her, his fingers playing with her hair, then pecked her lips softly. A much better place. “So… last night was eventful.” She had to bring it up again. It was a lot to digest.

“One way to put it,” Nick said. “Did you enjoy yourself?”

“Yeah, I had a blast.” Fun in a way she never thought she would. Guess there were more sides to her than even she knew. Guess she was more like the witches and wizards she came from than she had previously thought. “But maybe I’ll moderate the alcohol. I’m not enjoying the nausea right now.”

“It could be worse. Trust me.”

“No, I know. I’ve been told.” People in the mortal world knew how to party too, and alcohol was usually a part of that. “But thank you for taking care of me.” She raised herself slightly, resting on her elbows, then pressed their lips together.

Nick put his other arm behind his head, and nodded. “Yes, I’m finding I make a great boyfriend.”

“Satan, so full of himself,” Sabrina muttered, smiling to herself, and finding her nook against his neck.

“True. And, you know, you’re very interesting when you’re drunk.”

“In a good way, of course,” Sabrina said, batting her lashes at him. 

“And _I’m_ full of myself,” Nick said, his eyes lowering to her lips. “But, yes, in a good way. It makes you even feistier than usual. And it’s so cute when you throw yourself at me.” He quirked an eyebrow, waiting for her response, and when she gave him a gasp and soft shove, he held her even tighter as he pecked her lips. A shit eating grin plastered on his face. It was annoying that it attracted her even more to him. Even when he was purposefully offending her. “Feisty and cute.”

“Sounds fake.” Sabrina rolled her eyes, and wriggled out of his arms. Sitting up straight and folding her arms in front of her for dramatic effect. “I think I’m going to ignore you for the rest of the day.”

“Oh, come on.”

She glanced back at him over her shoulder, then in front herself again. “We’ll see who does the throwing themselves at others then.”

“Me, obviously me.” Nick crawled towards her, his arms on her thighs and his hot breath tickling her ear. “Need me to demonstrate?”

Sabrina raised her shoulder nonchalantly, trying to keep the amusement out of her voice. “Hm, if you insist.”

 

**3**

“Alright, darling. Your cups are waiting for you.” Aunt Hilda said as she leaned over the bar counter to find Sabrina’s eyes. Sabrina peeked behind a bookshelf, and gave her aunt a big smile. There were perks to aunt Hilda working at Cerberus Books. Many perks. She waved her hand.

“We’ll be right there. Thank you!” Sabrina walked to the back of the shelf, finding Nick crouched down, his fingers hovering over a row of books on the bottom of the shelf. He stood up with a book in his hand when she neared him.

Displaying the book in his hand, the corners of his mouth quirked up. “The range here is quite different from the library at the Academy, or the one I’ve got at home.” She took _The Idiot Brain_ from his hand, and put it back in the shelf without looking for the right location.

“Makes sense.” She moved to another shelf, where they held more classics to find a good book for him, and Nick followed her. “Wait, you’ve got a proper library?”

Nick canted against the bookshelf, not bothering to browse through them anymore, and crossed his arms in front of his chest. They had been browsing around for the last twenty minutes. Maybe he needed a little more guidance. “Mhmm… you can come visit, if you like.”

“Trying to lure me with books?” 

“Is it working?” Nick asked, bending towards her.

Sabrina laughed at the confession. He never hid his intentions, well… not the ones that were about wanting her. His other intentions were much harder to read. “Yes.” She pecked him on the lips, then focused her attention back on the books, trying to find one he might like.

Nick sighed, looking around him. “Don’t you think it’s strange that this place is a coffee shop, a diner, _and_ a bookshop?”

“No.” Sabrina loved the idea of having food and coffee readily available near books. She would spend whole afternoons here, only leaving when it became crowded around dinnertime. It used to be her perfect lazy Sunday, if it was not spent with… others. “Besides, it’s better than having none of them.”

“I suppose that’s true. Seems like this Dr. Cerberus really knows how to run a monopoly.”

Sabrina grinned, not disagreeing with Nick on that. Her eyes landed on a book that she had read for English class. “Hm. I think you’d like this one,” she said to herself, and pulled it out of the shelf, showing him. “ _Rebecca_?”

“What is it about?” Nick raised his eyebrow, looking more skeptical than when they had arrived here.

She nudged the book against his chest, trying not to get distracted by him, then browsed through the other classics. “Read the back cover.” Reminded of a certain book censoring fiasco at Baxter High, she wanted to see how many other classics she had read. Or had not read.

“A love triangle with the ghost of an ex-lover?” Nick said slowly, his voice moving away from her. “Sounds vaguely familiar.”

Sabrina flicked her head towards him to make a comment, but found him staring somewhere. She moved towards him, a different classic in her hand, and followed his line of sight. Harvey. He just sat down at a round table, taking his jean jacket off when their eyes met. He ceased moving, his lips parting in uncertainty, as if he was thinking of his next move, and suddenly her heart began to thud in her throat. “Oh…”

“Well, don’t leave the mortal hanging.” Nick inclined his head to Harvey, who nodded back, then turned to Sabrina. “He looks so lost with those puppy-dog eyes.”

She looked away from Harvey, not able to bear it, and searched for an opening in the shelf, where she could place the book she was holding, while she whispered to Nick, “I know… but I-I don’t know what to say.”

“That’s new.”

Giving Nick the evil eye for a second, she rolled her shoulders back, and pushed her heart down to where it belonged. Where it would not get the best of her. She still hesitated when she stood in front of his table, but Harvey stood up, seeming just as unsure as her, and it calmed her nerves. A little. “Hey Harvey,” she said, her voice confident.

“Hi.” Harvey dragged his hands over his grey shirt. He looked the same as always, as if nothing had changed. But that bit of sadness in his eyes, it showed the truth. “How are you, ‘Brina?”

“Hello…” Nick stood still next to Sabrina. Without meaning to she shifted her weight away from him. She grabbed her arm with her hand, trying not to fidget. Nick was not doing anything to make her uncomfortable, he kept his distance from her. But they were standing in front of her ex-boyfriend, so she could not help but feel uncomfortable… because Nick was her boyfriend now. 

Harvey cleared his throat, his eyes moving to Nick for a moment. “Hey, uhh, Nick. Right?”

“Right, just the guy who saved your ass that one time.” Nick raised his chin slightly, then put his hands in the pockets of his jacket. “Hard to forget, I know.”

“Yeah…” Harvey frowned to himself, lost in thought. 

Sabrina swallowed, letting go of her arm, pulling them both behind her back. “I’m good, Harvey. How have you been?”

“Yeah, good. Great.” Harvey frowned again, but nodded. “It’s just been a while, you know? It’s weird not having you around all the time. For all of us, I mean. Roz and Susie too.”

Sabrina nodded along with him, a heavy weight appearing on her shoulders. “It has been. How are they? Did you all continue the Christmas tradition?”

“You should really ask them yourself. They’ll be—” Harvey pointed to the table, but was cut off.

Sabrina shook her head. “I told you…”

“Right, can’t be around us anymore.” Harvey sounded disgruntled as he threw his hand in the air, as if he was reminding himself of the conversation they had had in his bedroom. The way he had sounded when he had broken up with her. She did not know what to say. She did not know how to make it better. She was trying to become a stronger and more powerful witch. She had to be at the Academy. She had to be the best. She had to follow the rules so she would not raise too much suspicion… among whomever was watching her. If she was ever going to take down the Dark Lord, then that required some sacrifices. She had been unable to cut out any and all happiness in her life to focus on her goals… that was where Nick had slipped in. She had not meant for that to happen. Not after how she hurt with Harvey.

“No, we could. There’ll just be repercussions. A price to pay,” Nick said with an uncaring shrug, and she flicked her head towards him. He was smirking, his mind going to places where it should not. “If we get caught, that is. We should hang out. The three of us. I foresee a lot of… fun.”

She did not want Harvey to be the one who was paying the price. “ _Nick_ ,” Sabrina said sternly, and he met her gaze, staring at her silently. Telling her so much with his eyes, so much of what he had said before, pushing her buttons. She had to focus. Destroying the Dark Lord. Her mortal friends would not get caught in the crossfires. Not if she had anything to say about it. Plus, this whole situation—her ex and her boyfriend—it was just really awkward for her. 

Nick smiled to Harvey, who had been unsure of how to reply. “Another time then, maybe.”


	3. The Reckoning Of Time

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I got carried away. My apologies?

**1**

“Where did you two sneak off to?” Aunt Zelda asked after Sabrina entered the kitchen through the entrance hall. The last droplets of rain still hung to her coat, and aunt Hilda ushered her back to the hallway to take her coat and muddy shoes off. 

Sabrina leaned into the kitchen, so aunt Zelda could still hear her. “We didn’t sneak.”

“The woods.” Nick walked past Sabrina into the kitchen, shoes and jacket already off. “We had to do some foraging for next week’s assignment.” He leaned against the wall, next to Salem who walked away from him with a loop, and up to her bedroom. Nick glanced at the cat before he continued, “Classes had been put on hold for the feast.”

Ambrose walked into the kitchen, eyeing Nick slowly as he perched on the side of the armchair at the breakfast table. “Which is rather strange, since it’s the most boring one of them all.”

“I’m not complaining,” Sabrina said, joining the others in the kitchen, rubbing her hands together to warm them up.

Aunt Zelda took a draft of her cigarette, sitting down across from Ambrose. “Yes, well, what did you find?”

“Uhh, hawthorn berries, birch bark, mandrake, and…” Sabrina looked away, trying to remember the final ingredient.

Nick nudged Sabrina. “Wormwood.”

“I knew that.”

Aunt Hilda handed both Sabrina and Nick a cup of tea. “No wonder you were gone so long.” Grateful, Sabrina took the cup. It had been rainy outside. The cold of winter was completely gone, but the chill of rain… still got everywhere. She shuddered.

“Yes, no wonder…” Ambrose said, staring intently at Sabrina who rolled her eyes.

“I still have some of those berries.” Aunt Hilda handed Ambrose his cup too, and after quirking his eyebrow he focused on his tea instead of Sabrina’s love life. “Could have saved you time.”

“That’s alright, aunt Hilda,” Sabrina said, blowing on her cup, letting the herbal-infused mist steam her face. “We’re almost done.”

“Well, we do still need a crystal,” Nick added.

Pouring herself some of her ambrosial brandy, aunt Zelda connected the dots. “Are you performing a malediction?” Sabrina nodded to her aunt, tentatively sipping on her tea in the hopes it was already drinkable. It was not. “Who are you cursing?”

“No one in particular…”

“Nick, you?” Aunt Zelda asked.

Without having to think he said, “Cassius.”

“Who’s that?”

Ambrose put his tea on the breakfast table, smiling. “The librarian at the Academy.”

“Good boy.” Aunt Zelda smiled too, nodding to herself. Then she put up that voice that she always had when she was lecturing Sabrina. “Number one rule with curses, Sabrina, is having a target in mind.”

Clearing her throat, Sabrina pursed her lips together. She was slightly annoyed with Nick for one-upping her in front of her aunt. “I will,” she muttered instead. She could not damn well tell them she had the Dark Lord in mind for pretty much anything. Except those _few_ times when she got distracted by demons, unwanted spirits, other weird creatures. Classes. Power. Nick. The Weird Sisters. Parties. And, well… “Anyways, we’re going to continue working on our assignment in my room.”

“In your _bed_ room?” Both her aunts stopped mid-movement and asked her that at the same time. As if she had never taken a boy to her room before.

Sabrina started backing out the kitchen, gesturing Nick to join her. “Uhh… yes.”

“Thank you for the tea,” Nick said to aunt Hilda. Suck up. 

She gave him a nervous smile, then turned to Sabrina. “Keep the door open.”

“Aunt Hilda!” Sabrina pulled Nick away, giving her aunts a very confused look. Grabbing her bag filled with herbs, she went up the stairs. “I can’t believe she said that.”

Shutting her door firmly, Sabrina placed her cup of tea carefully on her desk, and dumped the wet bag of herbs next to it. Nick had started sipping on the tea, so Sabrina walked into her bathroom to grab some towels. “Here.” She threw him one from the doorway, then peeled off her knitted tights. All rained under, they really were not comfortable anymore. With her fluffy towel she warmed up her legs when the floor in her room creaked.

She looked up and found Nick watching her, rubbing his hair dry with his very own towel. He smirked when she caught him. Raising her eyebrow, she shook her head and slinked to the door. He came closer too. “ _Pervert_ ,” she said, then closed the door in his face. A laugh was heard from the other side.

Smiling to herself, she changed out of her wet clothes and changed into something warm.

 

***

 

“Found it! Here we go,” Sabrina stopped leafing through the gazillionth spell book, and stretched out on the bed next to Nick. _Outside of time, outside of gain, know only sorrow, know only pain_. With some effort she had finally found the right spell they had to use for their malediction. Her elbow nudged against his, and Nick stopped reading one of the many other magic books, to read the spell along with her. It was better not to be voiced out loud. Accidents had happened with plenty of witches by saying spells and curses when they were not intended yet.

“Ok. Then we have to bind the herbs together slowly.” Nick walked to the wet bag that Sabrina had placed on the floor, filling his hands with all the different ingredients, then found his former position next to Sabrina. Though this time around an arm slid behind her back. “It’s supposed to take ten minutes.”

“Ten minutes exactly?”

Nick was separating the different herbs on the bed. “Give or take. It’s plants.”

“The glare aunt Hilda would inwardly give you.”

“Bet she does that a lot anyways,” Nick said with a smirk, not glancing her way, too focused on the binding process. Sabrina grinned, and helped him. Maybe they could speed up the process like that a bit. Four hands worked faster than two. When a small brownish-green patch of herbs was bound together, Sabrina spoke up again, “And now the stone, right? If I remember correctly.”

“Hmm, yeah.” Nick placed the bound herbs on the corner of her bed, away from them, then glanced at his book once more. “The stone is supposed to extract the good qualities from the herbs, but we don’t have that yet.”

“We’ll get one later. So… good qualities, which we flip with the spell,” Sabrina summarized their upcoming tasks.

Nick nodded, his jaw twitching. “That way the stone will have harnessed a lot of malevolence—”

“Without any repercussions. Well, to us.”

“That’s pretty wicked,” Nick said with a deep voice.

“Deliciously so.” She smiled and pressed her lips to his. Soft and warm, rousing her from the dull mood her studies had put her in. She sighed, looking at all the books next to her bed. “I still need to work on other binding rituals…” Changing the volumes to one on rituals, not spells, Sabrina harnessed all her energy on learning more stuff. _Endless stuff_. If it were up to her she would get to all the hard and dangerous spells, but even after being placed in advanced classes… she _still_ needed some sort of foundation. It was tiresome sometimes. But everyone else was doing the same, so she could not exactly object, though she had tried. A few hours, and a few more stolen kisses later she truly had had enough of it. Nick kept bothering her with kisses in her neck instead of her lips, and those made it much harder to keep her focus. Not that she wanted to anymore, anyway.

“Well, I’m done. I need a break.”

“Really? I could still go for hours,” Nick said, just to tease her. So she lay down on her back, her head coming to rest by his book. And she smiled at him innocently, batting her lashes. Seconds later his mouth had covered hers, his book closed and forgotten.

Needing more air again, Sabrina decided to bring up something that had been on her mind for a little while. “There was something I actually wanted to talk to you about,” She started. “I found something in my dad’s journal. The one you gave me,” Nick merely nodded his response, so she continued. “There were some things… it wasn’t spelled out specifically, but I think my dad was dabbling in blood magic. Not the use of blood in rituals or spells, but manipulating blood itself. Using it.”

“ _Really_?” Nick raised his eyebrows and stared off in the distance. “That kinda magic is considered… extremely dangerous. You’ll hardly find any information on it.”

“Why’s that?”

“Blood magic predates word-based magic. If a witch or warlock possesses the ability, then they can overpower almost anyone. They’d be close to invincible. But why would you father be dabbling in that? Why would a modern man like him return to such an ancient way?”

“I don’t know…” It did not make sense to her either. It was the darkest kind of magic she had heard of, and yet knew so very little about. But maybe it was the only kind of magic that could stop the Dark Lord himself. Maybe… as a last resort. Why did Nick care _anyway_? It was weird how he kept bringing up her dad. “I can’t believe he would tap into that.”

“Well, what else did the notebook say?” Nick leaned on his elbows again, hovering over her. “I can take another look at it if you want me to.”

“No… it’s alright.” She shook her head. Although she could use the insight, she did not want him to get too involved. Not until she knew more… about her dad and Nick’s motives. “I, just, where else can we find more information on blood magic?”

“An inquiry like that won’t go unnoticed,” Nick said pensively. “But I could check my mother’s private collection.” Sparkling brown eyes meeting Sabrina’s. “What do you have in mind, you nefarious creature?”

She shook her head, trying her hardest to remain neutral. “Nothing.”

“Lies. I’ve told you before—”

Sighing, Sabrina conceded. “Yes, I’m a terrible liar. Whatever.”

“You really have to work on that game face of yours.” Nick’s smirk grew wider before he pecked her softly. “So, are you going to tell me?”

She shook her head again. “Not yet.”

“Hm.” He tilted his head. “That’s a promise I can live with.”

“That wasn’t a promise!” Sabrina said, her eyes widening.

Nick shrugged, apparently not caring about the importance of semantics. “The promise was implied.”

“That’s not how promises work!” Sabrina lifted herself on her elbows, her face serious and coming closer to his.

“No, you can’t go back on your promises.” He raised his eyebrows, the wrinkles on his forehead showing, and she knitted her brows in annoyance at all of him. His annoying personality and his annoying face. He was giving it his all today. She wrapped an arm around his neck, then tugged him towards her, their mouths on each other. Still tasting the chocolate and herbal-flavored tea on him, she kissed him harder. Breathy brushes of their lips, moistened mouths, teeth dragging over skin, making her tingle everywhere. The anticipation of his next touch sent bursts of flames to her chest, its reach increasing each time. Licking and sucking on the sensitive skin of her neck, Sabrina had to bite her lip to keep quiet. They should not be doing that. Nick’s hand swept past her breast, lingering before he skimmed the side of her figure, and dug his nails into her hips. “ _Hmm_ , Sabrina. I want you,” Nick breathed, pressing his bulge against her leg.

She giggled when his hot breath blew over the crook of her neck, right after he had licked her there. Hot connecting with cold. A moan accidentally escaped. Her eyes widened in fear. They should not be doing that. “Not here,” Sabrina said, trying to calm down. Nick flipped around next to her, his back on the bed too, and groaned softly before the only perceived noises were their deep breaths.

Suddenly he pushed himself off the bed, and started pacing the room. Sabrina rolled on her side. “What are you doing?”

“I just… need a little distance.”

Her mouth curved into a smile. “Walking it off?” Sabrina chuckled, pitying him a little. She had been here many times with Harvey. Funny, how when it came down to this… boys suffered in the same way, whether they were a mortal or warlock. Maybe it was a sex curse that a vengeful witch put on all men. Sabrina loved that idea. Stopping herself from laughing harder, she sat up on the bed. “How can I distract you?”

“You’re already far too distracting,” Nick said, his voice still deep and affected. His body too. She laughed again. She could not help it. But she could play nice. _Or not_. She got up, stopping Nick in his track, and curled her arms around his neck. Extending his torture. “Tease,” he murmured.

“I could stop,” Sabrina said against his lips, and was about to move away, when he held her in place, continuing their actions. Fervent and deliberate. She smiled into the kiss.

“Sabrina! Dinner’s ready!” Aunt Hilda’s muted voice carried from her door.

Nick groaned, breaking the kiss. “ _Shit_.” 

 

**2**

After a long and animated dinner, Nick rummaged around Sabrina’s room for his things, and to sneak in a few more kisses. Once he had retrieved everything, aunt Zelda stalled him a little further, unaware that he was supposed to be home on time to see his parents, which Nick apparently did not think was important enough to share. Sabrina did, though. But he had interjected, all too eager to please at least one aunt. It was kind of adorable. It almost made up for his annoying behavior earlier that day. Almost. Letting them chat amongst themselves, Sabrina put wet food in Salem’s dispenser. He had left her bedroom almost as soon as she and Nick had entered it. Seemed like he was not a huge fan of him. She put the dispenser back down on the ground when Ambrose tapped her on the shoulder. A serious look on his face.

“It’s Harvey,” he said, and something squeezed together her heart.

“Is he ok?”

Ambrose wrinkled his nose. “Huh? How would I—” Recognition dawned on his face. “Oh my. No, he’s alive. He’s _here_.”

“Oh…” Sabrina breathed out with relief. That was very upsetting for a moment. “You could have just said that.”

“Quite sure I did,” Ambrose plumped himself on his favorite chair, then gestured to the door. “He’s on the porch. Two boys on the same day? When one hasn’t even left yet…”

“Alright…” Sabrina ignored him and walked to the door, Nick’s voice still coming from the sitting room. Yeah, well, by now Harvey must be used to Nick. Nothing she could do about that. “Hey, Harvey?”

Harvey turned around, holding a cardboard box with one arm. “Hi.”

“What are you doing here? Is everything ok?”

“I did a spring cleaning of my room, my dad was getting on my ass, and I found some of your things.” Harvey lifted the box a little higher with his arm. “Here to return them.”

“Oh… right, ok.” Sabrina stepped aside, clearing the road to the door. “Yeah, ok, you should—”

“Ah, there you are.” Nick walked on the porch, shoulder bag around his chest. “Oh, and so are you.” Nick acknowledged Harvey, who gave him a curt hello while Nick curled his arm around Sabrina. “ _Hmm_. Ok.” Nick sighed absentmindedly, glancing up Harvey’s tall frame, then pressed a soft kiss to her lips, coloring her cheeks instantly. “See you on Monday,” he whispered, then cleared his throat. “Mortal, open invitation.” And Sabrina opened her mouth in wonder as he walked into the woods, but shut it immediately when Harvey continued the conversation.

“Uhh, yeah, sorry. Come on in.” Sabrina waited for Harvey to enter, closing the door behind her, when at that exact moment her aunts wandered through the entrance hall to the kitchen. That they were surprised would not properly express it. Two different kinds of surprised though. Two—It was not important. “What did you bring?”

“Oh, hm. Let’s see. A sweater. This teddy bear.” Harvey handed her the small teddy bear as he rifled through the box. “Some DVDs.” The bear had been a gift he had won for her at the fair on their second date. When they had their first kiss. Her first kiss. The memory put a smile on Sabrina’s face. It did not hurt to think about it, she realized. “Ah, right, your comics. They kind of got lost between all of mine.”

“Haven’t read these in ages! That should be fun.” Sabrina put the teddy bear back in the box, and took the box from Harvey, putting it next to the stairs. “How’s your comic been going, by the way?”

Harvey put his hands in the pockets of his faded jeans. “Pretty well, actually. I lose track of time working on them, which comes in handy sometimes.”

“Yeah, I remember it sucked you in. Like a black hole,” Sabrina said with a smile. “What are you working on?”

“Oh, it’s an adventure story. About a man who has to destroy an army of golems.”

“An army of golems?” Sabrina repeated, thinking that over in her mind, while Harvey told her the plot. The creation of creatures. Not conjuration, but creation. Hm. That could be worth looking into. “Sounds like you’re really on to something there!” She put her hand on his arm, wanting to give him encouragement not just in the verbal form, but it still felt kind of odd. And he glanced to it, shutting down. So she retracted her hand. They were not there yet.

“You really changed, ‘Brina,” Harvey said with a gentle voice, meeting her eyes once more. “Not just your looks, but… I don’t know. There’s something different about you.”

She inclined her head. “I’ve just been trying to expand my horizon a little.”

“You mean Nick?”

“No, but I guess he’s a part of it,” Sabrina said eventually, giving that some thought too. 

Harvey shifted his weight on his feet, zigzagging back and forth. “Are you happy? You seem happy.”

“I’m trying. Are you—”

Finding his footing again, he interrupted her, “Does he make you happy?”

“He does.” Sabrina swallowed, finding it hard to admit that to Harvey. “I’m sorry.”

His expression closed up, but he bobbed his head. More to himself, it seemed. “No, it’s good for me to hear. It might help.”

“I don’t want to hurt you, Harvey. I just want you to be happy.” Sabrina hugged herself, pangs of her conscience reappearing just like that.

“Yeah, I get that. I’m trying too.” He gave her an empty smile. She knew those. She knew all his smiles. “I didn’t mean to sound angry last time. It was just… it was hard to see you again, with him around,” Harvey said, soft mumbles, but out in a mostly steady stream. “It’s even worse because he seems nice. And he saved my life. It makes me feel like a dick.”

She wanted to hug him. Put her arms around him and tell him things would be ok. She would make them ok. But that was not going to work out now. God, this was so hard. “You’re not. We’re all… just doing our best here. Besides, if it makes you feel better, Nick can be a total dick too.”

“Really?”

“No, he’s usually very nice. Sorry.” Sabrina frowned. 

Much to her surprise, Harvey chuckled. “No, that’s good. You shouldn’t be with someone who isn’t good for you.” Now that was a sincere smile. It warmed her heart. That he still had those for her.

“What about… you and Roz?”

“Roz?” Harvey breathed out, rubbing the palm of his hand against his neck. “That, uhh, that didn’t work out.”

“Oh…” She did not know how to respond to that. Her heart was stumbling over its own rhythm. She could not say she was relieved. They were being civil, nice even. On the path to something restorable. A friendship, maybe? And she did want both Harvey and Roz to be happy, just maybe not _together_. Unless there really was no other way.

“Yeah, that wasn’t fair of me. Everything was still so fresh, and I tried to rid myself of my feelings of you the wrong way. It, uhh… I shouldn’t have done that. Wasn’t fair to her, or myself.”

Or to me, she wanted to say. She did not think she would ever be able to look Roz in the eyes again, knowing that she probably had a thing for Harvey all along. She would, of course, if she had to. But, truthfully, that would take more work than getting in a good place with Harvey. “Ok, and at home? How are things with your dad?”

“Depends on the day. It’s, uhh, been a real struggle.”

Sabrina stepped closer. “Is he giving you a lot of trouble, because I—”

“Nothing I can’t handle. Don’t worry about it.” Harvey glanced at the door behind him, then insisted. “Really, ‘Brina. I mean it.”

Her chest grew tighter at the mention of his pet name for her. She had to accept that she had to stay out of his issues. She said goodbye to that life. This was one of the many consequences. Unless he needed her help. She would give it freely. “Ok… well, thanks for stopping by. And for my things.”

“Yeah, no problem.” Harvey walked through the door, turned back around, gave a halfhearted wave. A nervous smile on his face. “I’ll see you around.”

“See you around, Harvey,” Sabrina said after him, locked the door, then leaned against it with a deep exhalation.

 

**3**

After having to hear Prudence yap about the party she would be allowed to have at the Academy in honor of her birthday for weeks on end, the moment had finally come that Sabrina would no longer have to listen to it. A night of celebration without supervision. What was Father Blackwood thinking? It worked in her favor. It meant she could do what she needed to do once the party had died down, and people returned back to their beds, or to beds that did not belong to them. It meant not getting caught. The Great Hall had been transformed into an exuberantly decorated ring-shaped room, one half with tables and seats, the other left open for dancing. Prudence pranced around the room, adorned in silver and brilliance, with her long arms extended for those who sent their best wishes to her.

“Happy birthday.” Sabrina smiled in earnest to her when Prudence had made her way to Sabrina and Nick, waiting in line like the others. It vaguely reminded Sabrina of the Feast of Feasts, and she figured Prudence was happy to have another day in which she could feel like a queen. It had become clear to Sabrina that what Prudence wanted was to stand out. In some twisted way, it was to make up for things that had not been given to Prudence throughout her life, so she made sure she took it whenever she could. Though Sabrina did not always agree with Prudence’s ways, they _had_ worked against Sabrina, and others who did not deserve cruelty, Sabrina did understand Prudence better. And it helped. It was why they were friends now. Friends and foes. Only two sides to the same coin they were both acquainted with.

Nick entwined his fingers with Sabrina’s and pulled out a small box from his pants, which he presented to Prudence. “Happy birthday. It’s from the both of us,” he said, rubbing his thumb over Sabrina’s hand, catching her eyes. 

Prudence gandered at their faces, a pleased smile on her face… though Sabrina found her expression hard to read. “Hm, thank you.” Inside there was a silver necklace with a small orb that contained glistering fairy beads. The beads shifted its colors around a mist, a soft yellow drifting into green then blue. “Oh. You remembered.” Her eyes lit up. “Thanks, Nicky. Sabrina.” Prudence closed the gift box, and gave it to Dorcas for safekeeping. “It doesn’t match with my outfit.”

They had gone back and forth on what to get Prudence. She did not have much, but she had high standards. And even higher expectations. At the last minute he had remembered this. Even though Nick had explained to Sabrina why Prudence would like this particular gift for her birthday, the way Prudence lit up and highlighted her past with Nick… it, well, Sabrina did not want to be jealous. Everyone had a past. And Nick was so understanding of hers with Harvey. “Nothing but perfection is good enough,” Sabrina said instead, willing away unnecessary emotions. Nick was clearly into her, not Prudence. 

“Not a hair out of place,” Dorcas added a little underwhelmed, placing the box inside a bag of gifts. 

“Precisely. Enjoy the party.” Prudence continued her walk, greeting people, accepting gifts, as if she was the queen of the castle. At least for the night.

After her rounds, a group of women formed a circle within the Great Hall. The lights dimmed. A suspenseful song appeared from… Sabrina observed the walls. She had no idea where from. There were no speakers. The women swayed their arms, then pirouetted a step to the side. It was a performance. Lustrous strings of silk emerged from their hands, a silver gleam to them, similar to Prudence’s dress, and they connected with one another. Straining the silk. Swishing it around their sweeping figures. Curving and tightening around silver, sparkles erupting with every stretch and floating into the air. Sabrina held in her breath. She had never seen something like it. Wondering if Prudence felt the same way, she looked for her. Seated on her throne, Prudence stared at the performers. Her face was still unreadable. Frowning to herself, Sabrina won—

Nick slithered his arms around Sabrina’s waist, drawing her against his chest. With rolls of his hips, he faintly steered her from left to right, moving along to the cadence of the performance in front of them. She sighed, and loosened up her muscles in his embrace. Leaning into him now, she grazed her nails over his arms while Nick trailed the sensitive parts of her neck with his nose.

“You’ve been up to something,” he breathed into her ear.

Biting her lip, Sabrina shook her head. She denied his words. There was no escaping people’s notice when you lived with them, especially if they paid attention to you. “And _you_ are very observant.” Sabrina knew that lying was pointless with Nick. He saw right through her. So distraction was the next best thing. Plus, it was getting late, and she wanted to get some sleep, since she had to wake up in the middle of the night for her little… experiment. “Walk me to the girls’ dormitory.”

“I’m getting an invite?” Nick skated his tongue over her ear, capturing her earlobe between his teeth. And Sabrina trembled in his arms, close to losing her focus. He had been doing that to her so often.

“No.” She cleared her throat. “I’m just going to bed early. But… walk me?”

Confusion clouded his features, but he followed her. “Oh, alright. Is this a power move to Prudence, or something?”

Sabrina chuckled, admiring the way his eyebrows drew together. It made him seem far more innocent than he was. “What? No. I’m just sleepy, and I’ve got to wake up early tomorrow.”

“Morning classes are canceled.”

“I know.”

“ _Alright_. Keep your secrets to yourself,” Nick said with a hushed voice, and grabbed her hand, pulling her in the wrong direction. “But then I want a little detour.”

After finding an empty classroom, he chanted a charm that flared the wick of the candles in the room and closed the door behind them. Sabrina simpered, readying herself to be inflamed and frustrated by his touch all over again. “That’s a price I’m willing to pay.”

Nick bobbed his head knowingly, sauntering away from her and the candles until he reached the desk in the middle of the classroom. He was slowly enveloped by the flickering darkness, but she still caught his trademark smirk. Always up to no good. Preferably with her. When she neared him, her fingers caressing the trim of her little red dress, Nick lighted another candle on the desk. He sat down on the desk with a soft sigh as his eyes traveled down her figure. She clacked with the tip of her shoes against his feet, and he spread his legs for her. Sabrina sucked in her breath, trying to slow it down as the thrill of expected pleasure coursed through her veins. Nick placed his hands on the side of the desk, leaning back a little, while she stepped between his legs, taking away the distance. The soft, golden light of the candle danced on the side of his face, revealing the brilliance of one of his brown eyes while the other seemed as black as the shade they were surrounded by. Without having touched him yet, she could already sense the rush of burning, of desire, erupt in her chest. Letting out a deep breath, Sabrina flattened the palm of her hands against his collarbones, then dragged them down his chest, her nails scraping the fabric of his black shirt. His jaw twitched. His dark lashes lowered. His eyes grew heavier. And he surrendered to her spell, canting towards her to press their lips together. 

It was a drawn out and sloppy kiss. As drawn out as the moment before had been, and it was unbearable. All Sabrina wanted was to rip off his shirt and taste more of him. Feel more of Nick. As if he sensed her urgency, Nick wrapped his arms around her waist, his fingers digging into her ass. Sabrina whimpered when he pushed her against his bulge. Her body was so sensitized to his touch, his lips, that it made her yearn for him inside and out. It had been ever since they had taken things to the next level. Sweeping her fingers through his soft hair, Sabrina did what she knew she should not. She dragged her teeth over his skin, then she bit and sucked softly on the crook of his neck, escalating their torment. Nick groaned, and threw his head back to give her more access, urging her harder on his bulge, rubbing her where she was craving him. Sabrina gasped. A pressure was starting to build at her core, one that could only go in one familiar direction, and she was not sure if she would be able to stop herself if she continued this. But they could not. Not here. Not at the Academy.

Finding her strength, Sabrina freed herself from his sorcery and put some distance between them, but Nick immediately stood up and moved along with her. “Unholy shit, Sabrina.” He muttered into another kiss, and she felt herself weakening again. Letting out a deep breath, Nick broke the kiss. “Visit me at my house this weekend?” Nick pecked her lips as his fingers edged to her breasts, squeezing her softly. “I need to feel more of you. Unless you’re willing to give me a _hand_ right here?” Nick guided one of her hands to his bulge, pecking her again.

“Your place,” Sabrina breathed, gripping him firmly in her hand, then pushed him away from her. He sat back down on the desk with a groan. This time she was the one who really needed the distance. It was like he had enkindled an inclination inside of her that had been dormant before. It was not comparable to when she pleasured herself. And it had never gotten that far with Harvey. This… was potent. Intoxicating. Stirring her thoughts away from her needs, she concentrated on his home. And his parents. “How, hmm, how was that dinner with your parents?”

Nick shifted his weight on the desk. There was a long pause before he responded, and Sabrina assumed he needed a moment to gather his wits, “Oh, they had to cancel at the last minute.” His voice was still heavy, but the tone was different. “A work thing.”

“Again?” She stepped closer, and he nodded. “I can’t believe it. When was the last time you saw them?”

Nick sighed, avoiding her eyes briefly. “When you met them…”

“But that’s so many months ago!”

“Well, I don’t visit back every weekend. Usually just when I take you home, which are the best of times.” He entwined their fingers, and tugged her between his legs once more, but she crossed her arms, breaking his touch. “What’s wrong, Sabrina? Why are you pushing this?”

“Nothing’s wrong with _me_.” She straightened her back, standing tall between his legs. And he rested his weight on the palm of his hands, sighing at her. “It’s just not normal for you to be completely abandoned by your parents.”

“I know. Don’t be upset,” Nick said, a neutral expression returning to his face as the desire was quickly disappearing. “I’m not.”

If anything, Sabrina knew that families were far from perfect. Not one family was. Not even hers. Every story was hurdled by pain. But she could not understand bad parenting. It was one thing to make mistakes as a parent, but causing harm. That was never ok. And this was not at all like with Harvey, but that did not make it any less ok. And that Nick just brushed it off, his feelings, it infuriated her. At least Harvey would talk to her about it. “Are you sure? Why are you so passive about this? I know you’re really good with the indifference, but it’s got to hurt.”

“Of course it hurts.” Nick curled his fingers around the edge of the desk, holding the tension in his body. And Sabrina felt bad for snapping at him. “I never said it doesn’t, but there isn’t much I can do. They’re simply not around.”

“They should be.”

“Yes, well…” He let out another deep breath, beckoning her into his arms. She allowed it this time. “My family is complicated. Just let it go, Sabrina.”

“I just don’t want you to hurt,” Sabrina said, and Nick rested the side of his head on her breasts. She brushed her fingers through his hair. She wanted to continue talking about this. He would always skirt the topic of his parents, of anything truly painful to him. But if he had allowed her to keep her secrets, then she could not push him into revealing his. If her previous mistakes had taught her anything, then she was supposed to step back. But…

“People hurt,” Nick said, tightening his hold on her. “It’s bound to happen. You can’t control everything.”

She could make it right. She could get even. “Doesn’t mean I have to like it.” Sabrina raised her shoulder, then sighed. Letting go. She knew she should. She felt protective of him. It was hard to not want to make his life better. “Besides, I only want to help.”

“I know you do.” Nick looked at her, sitting straight. “And that actually means a lot. But you’re already helping me. When you listen to me. When you hug me. When you make me forget anything and everything with your kisses.” He shook his head, smiling to himself. “Funnily enough, it’s kind of like magic.”

“What is?”

“Love.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, well, well, Harvey dropped off some stuff while Nick dropped the L-bomb, lol. Ok!


	4. The Flames of Rapture

**1**

A few hours later, Sabrina changed from her nightgown to a cleanly washed white dress. Agatha’s birthday party had lasted well into the night, but the dormitory had finally quieted down, and all the girls were soundly asleep. Even Sabrina got some. She collected the items from underneath her bed. Scriptures that she had secretly copied from an anthology in the library. Fresh springwater that had never been poured into a vessel. _That_ had been a hassle to transport. Honey. Virgin soil procured from a place that had never been dug before. A sacred location. A witch’s job meant getting her hands dirty. Quite literally this time too.

Barefooted she slipped through the corridors of the Academy, until she found an area where the moonlight shined inside. It was an open area, so she had to be careful. She opened the window as quietly as she could. Direct contact was necessary. Lowering to the ground, right where the moonlight hit the stone floor, Sabrina placed a thin white cloth. She reached for the virgin soil in her bag, and—

Heavy steps came from behind her, halting her movements. “Sabrina Spellman.” It was Prudence.

“Uhh, are we saying each other’s names?” Sabrina said with a high pitched-voice, trying and failing not to sound suspicious. She jumped to her feet, and hid the virgin soil in her small bag. Still in her flowing silver dress, Prudence walked with a stagger. Prudence was about to respond, then rested against the wall instead. Her lipstick was smudged. Red eyes, and darkness underneath that came from drinking, not sleeping, and… had she cried? “Are you ok?”

“What are you doing?”

“Nothing, I’m just waiting for Nick,” she lied. “To… you know.”

“No, you wouldn’t. You’re boring like that. _Everyone_ here knows that,” Prudence drawled. And that was exactly why Sabrina would never at the Academy. There was no winning. Plus, the idea of getting caught did not thrill her at all. “So tell me, or I’ll go to my father.”

Sabrina crossed her arms, almost rolling her eyes at the sentence. “That doesn’t exactly convince me to tell—” Her eyes went wide when Prudence suddenly dropped herself on the floor, legs curved less than elegantly. She… Prudence was sobbing. “Prudence? Are you ok?” Sabrina put her bag on the floor next to the cloth, then rushed to Prudence, not sure what to do next.

“Do I look ok?” Prudence spat out, kohl-stained tears forming by her eyes, refusing to fall down to her cheek.

Sabrina sat down on the cold floor next to Prudence. “What happened?”

“Men happened. The scum of the earth,” Prudence said as she removed her heels.

Without wanting to startle Prudence, Sabrina carefully inspected Prudence’s legs and arms, checking for any indicators of struggle, and carefully asked the next question, “Are you hurt?”

“What? _No_. Not like that.” Prudence twisted her face in anger. Was Prudence angry with her for not understanding? Because that was on Prudence, who normally knew how to land… any kind of message. So Sabrina remained silent. Maybe it would come. “You know he said I could have this party? I actually thought he cared, really cared. But then he couldn’t be bothered to be around me. Rushed home to be with his precious son. He always does. I’m just a burden that he can sometimes turn into a convenience.”

“Oh…”

Prudence rested her head against the wall, snuffling a little. As she blinked her eyes shut, a kohl-stained tear rolled down. “Maybe it would have been better if I had never known that he is my father. Now I’ve got all these bullshit expectations, these stupid childish notions. And he’s failing to meet them.” She lowered her head, accusative eyes on Sabrina. “ _You_ did that.”

“I couldn’t have known.” Sabrina raised her eyebrows, startled at this loophole Prudence was throwing at her. 

“But you can never not meddle,” Prudence said through her teeth, nearing Sabrina’s personal space. More tears coming down Prudence’s face. “You ruin everything. Ruined my chances here. Everyone wants to know about Edward Spellman’s daughter who has _so_ much potential. Why? Just reckless and usually lucky.” Sabrina would have protested it was not luck, but talent and being right. But it did not seem like the moment. Prudence was venting. Sabrina had been here too, not too long ago, and this was not about her. It was about Prudence, so she could remain quiet… for now. “You took away my honor in service to the Dark Lord. And now…” Prudence looked away and sniffled. A thought was occupying her mind. “Though there’s perks to knowing, I guess. I got to have this party. I looked beautiful.”

“You did. You looked gorgeous,” Sabrina said, and placed her hand on top of Prudence’s, then gave it a soft squeeze. It was a bit strange, and Prudence stared at their hands, but she did not retract hers. And so Sabrina didn’t either. 

“Thanks. I know.”

“Come on. Let’s get you to bed.”

 

***

 

After performing her sisterly duty, Sabrina had returned to the corridor. Her bag and cloth still in the same place. That was a risk, but it would have been an even greater risk if Prudence had discovered what it was she was hiding. What she was doing was definitely against the Academy’s rules. And Sabrina did not trust Prudence. Not even after tonight. Definitely not after tonight. The only problem with not trusting people, or not wanting to drag people into her troubles was… well, she really needed another person for this.

“Up to no good?” Nick’s voice came from behind her, and Sabrina almost jumped out of her skin. She had not heard him at all. He quirked his eyebrow with a tilt of his head when she glanced his way.

She squinted her eyes at him. “You’re not supposed to be here.”

“And I should give you points for trying,” Nick said smugly, then bent down next to her. “You’re forming clay? What are you creating?”

Murmuring a chant, Sabrina transported the spring water through the air without touching it. “Golems…” The water spilled on the virgin soil, and she began to blend the ingredients together.

“You shouldn’t be doing that alone.”

Trickles of dark brown earth covered the palm of her hands, dribbling down from her muddied nails to the white cloth underneath it. Sabrina nodded, focused on the work in front of her. “I know.” She was aware of the dangers that came with creating a golem, but she had all this extra power now. So much of it. Power she did not have when she had bended the rules before.

Nick got up and disappeared from the corner of her eye. But then she felt him wrap his arms and legs around her. His chest pressed to her back. His inner thighs against her outer ones. His warm breath in her neck. Fingers entwining in the dripping virgin soil with hers. She breathed out, furrowing her eyebrows, keeping her focus as he fused his energy with hers. Together they kneaded the clay in the moonlight. Only her soft chants and their swelling breaths perceptible to her ears. Hours passed until it hardened into an imitation of a human figure. But chunkier. She was going for brutal force.

“What’s next?” Nick whispered with a honeyed voice when they stripped each other’s hands of the remnants of clay.

“We feed it.” Sabrina sloped her head towards him, glancing his way again, then told him the next incantation they needed to recite over and over as they would breathe life into every organ of the creature. There was more time-pressure now. Sabrina had been delayed by Prudence earlier. The moonlight had vanished, and the first rays of dawn were emerging at the horizon. It was time for her golem to wake up. Together they repeated the incantation, feeding the golem with their energy, feeding it with her thoughts, feeding it with its purpose. To destroy the Dark Lord. They were completely visible now in the corridor they were seated in. No longer hidden. It was time. Sabrina hoped it would be enough. Reaching for the honey, she dipped her thumb in it, then brushed it over the golem’s head. “Surgit!”

 

***

 

“Sabrina Spellman!” Father Blackwood shrieked with fury as he neared her and Nick. They were standing in the woodland behind the Academy. An unnatural path of destruction devised by the golem that she had not been able to control for too long. It had awoken like she had commanded. It was so enormous they had to move away from the window to give it space, and not be crushed in the process. She spoke to it. Willed it to her word. But then something went wrong. It became angry. Before she knew it, the golem had wrecked the corridor, broken down the walls, and tried to find a way out. It succeeded. She and Nick chased after it, trying to contain it. Put the genie back in the bottle. But it turned on them next. By then half the school had woken up, and Father Blackwood was alerted. “Get to my office,” he said, trying to contain his anger, but he had these bulging veins going down his head. He was not fooling anyone, unfortunately. He spun around to Nick and pointed to the Academy. “You too.”

Twigs crushed underneath their feet with every step. The loudest underneath Father Blackwood’s, who was marching behind them. Students still dressed in pajamas had gathered around the massive breach the golem had bursted through, and watched her warily as she passed them. Everyone she knew, who knew her. Teachers. The Weird Sisters. Prudence averted her eye. Other familiar faces. Yeah, Sabrina was in for hell. Father Blackwood would not let this go.

“What in Satan’s name were you thinking producing golems?” Father Blackwood hissed through his teeth as soon as he had shut the door to his office. Not waiting for an answer, he struck one of the chairs in front of his desk with his cane. “Sit.” Sabrina and Nick followed his instructions, and Father Blackwood paced behind his desk before he sat down himself, brushing his long jacket away from the chair. “Do you know how incredibly stupid that was?”

“We’re sorry, Father Blackwood,” Nick spoke up, and Father Blackwood inclined his head as he mulled something over, then set his eyes on Sabrina. He quirked his brow, waiting for a response.

“Yes, we’re sorry,” she said. She was not, but what else could she say? That she was sorry her plan did not pan out. Assuredly, it would not go down well.

“I find it very cumbersome that I am pulled away from my time at home to hear Sabrina Spellman is up to no good. _Again_. I wonder if you will ever learn how to conduct yourself as is requested from you,” Father Blackwood said with a resentful glare, and his slender fingers curved around the handle of his cane, tapping the collar to a sedate rhythm. “And what’s worse, you’ve now destroyed property.”

“That wasn’t supposed to happen,” Sabrina mumbled. She was not sure how she was going to talk herself out of this. Hopefully the punishment would not be too severe. 

“What was? You were just out to exasperate me then, perhaps?”

“No, Father Blackwood.”

Nick cleared his throat, and leaned towards the desk. “Father Blackwood, I don’t think it’s fair to solely blame—”

“Who concocted this idea?” Father Blackwood raised his hand as he cut Nick off, then glanced back at Sabrina, waiting for what they both knew was coming.

“I did,” she muttered, picking at the fabric around the arm of the chair.

“Who gathered the materials, which—might I add—are a nuisance to find?”

“I did,” she repeated.

“Who initiated the—”

“I did.”

Father Blackwood gave a wry smile, seemingly pleased with himself. “And there you have it. _I_ , for one, am not surprised. But I’ll hear no more of this. You’re on thin ice, Ms. Spellman.” He gave her a stern stare. “I have contacted your aunt to discuss a suitable punishment. She has managed to persuade me not to expel you, but I don’t want to see your face today. Go home,” Father Blackwood waved her away, no longer bothering to look at her. Sabrina counted her blessings, and glanced to the side, to Nick, who raised his shoulder. She put her weight on the arms of the chairs to stand up when Father Blackwood stopped her. “Oh, and Ms. Spellman, try my patience once more, and I’ll gladly banish you from the Academy for good. The Dark Lord wanted your name and obedience, He won’t care whether you attend the Academy.”

A momentary look of discomfort crossed her face, and Father Blackwood smiled wider at her before returning to Nick. “I need another word with you, Mr. Scratch.” Sabrina stood up and left as Father Blackwood ignored her existence once more. She had not taken into consideration that she could actually be expelled. She thought the Dark Lord also wanted her at the Academy, but maybe that had been one of Father Blackwood’s manipulations. Maybe the Dark Lord merely wanted Sabrina at His bidding. They all seemed to want that. The Dark Lord. Father Blackwood. Aunt Zelda. But what about what she wanted? Needed? Sabrina blinked away the angry tears that were burgeoning in her eyes, and stormed to the dormitory to gather her clothes.

She had lost sight of what it was that she needed. All she had been doing was trying to become a more powerful witch, so she could take down the Dark Lord. There was always an angle, always a gain. Always something that needed to be done. And to accomplish all that, she needed the Academy. She could not risk it. But what she needed even more right now… was to be away from it all. Her life had been so much simpler when it did not revolve around plotting and planning, when she would just hang out with her friends for hours after school—just because. Go to the movies on Fridays, and dissect every storyline and character arc. Read her comics with Harvey. Revel in the fictitious horror. Just do nothing. Forget about herself. She supposed she had that with Nick, but this world… it cost her. Always having to be on alert was weighing on her. It created missteps. She had performed a seriously advanced spell in the middle of the night, and it fucking backfired on her. This was not working out.

She missed her old life.

She missed Harvey.

 

**2**

Harvey’s home stood by itself, no other houses in sight, accompanied only by dark, barren trees. It was a rather sizable construction, a sign of his father’s former affluence, a remnant of a time when Harvey’s mother still lived, Tommy still lived, and Harvey was happy to be at home. Sabrina trudged through the towering trees towards the house, every now and then disappearing in the touches of cast shadows, and listened to the rustles of leaves underneath her feet. It was a beautiful house, or it had been at one point in time. The soft green wood disguised the construction from any unwanted beholder, very much so like her own home could be hidden from the mortal world, and Sabrina wondered if that had been a tactical reason. Was there more to the Kinkle’s witch hunting past than she knew, more than Harvey knew? Soft green during the day, but as soon as nightfall occurred the horizontal logs of the house blended into the darkness of the woodlands. There was definitely more to it, Sabrina was certain now.

She rang the doorbell, faintly wishing his father would answer the door so she could ask him a few questions about the Kinkle’s backstory. Knowing Harvey’s father that would probably not lead to anything useful. Sabrina also had the inkling that his father was not a fan of her. It might have had something to do with the many times she stood up for Harvey. A _good_ father was supposed to appreciate that in a girlfriend. Ex-girlfriend. The lights went on in the hallway, and Sabrina took a step back, sucking in her breath.

“Uhh, hi?” Harvey froze in the doorway, then managed to scratch the back of his head as the expression on his face dulled. Trying to stop a grimace of pain from appearing on hers, she lowered her eyes to his stomach, which had become more exposed in his rumpled crop top. “Is everything ok?”

Sabrina let out the breath she was holding, and nodded to herself. “Yeah, I’m fine.”

“Ok…” Harvey lowered his hand, and moved aside. “Do you want to come in?”

“Your dad isn’t home?” Sabrina asked as she looked around the living room. Not a sign of empty bottles or burning cigarette butts in the ashtray, so she made herself comfortable on the couch. Maybe Sabrina could ignore her own shit if she focused on Harvey’s.

“No, he’s out drinking with some buddies from the mine.” Harvey hesitated by the couch, moved away some belongings, then sat down next to her. “You’re lucky I wasn’t wearing my headphones.”

“I would’ve found a way to get your attention.”

Harvey chuckled, agreeing with a bob of his head. “Heh, of course you would have.” His eyes moved past her, towards the magazines on the coffee table, and when she tried to—“So, what’s up, ‘Brina?”

She chewed on her lip. How would she even begin to explain that to him? She really did not have much of an answer for herself. “Could I get a drink?”

“Oh, yeah, of course. No manners.” Harvey stood up immediately. “What would you like?”

This was weird. She was putting him out, but she could not stop herself. She was focusing on her needs, and she needed him. She missed him. They could move past the weird, they had done that for a moment a little over a month ago, back when he delivered her things. So they could do it again, she hoped. Sabrina shrugged, not wanting to put him out even more. “Whatever’s fine.”

His eyes narrowed for a second as he watched her in silence, and Sabrina was going to ask what that was about, but then he raised his arms, and inclined his head. Harvey reached for the magazine on the coffee table and moved from her sight to the kitchen. They were both being weird… both being accommodating, as if they had not spent almost every day of the last few years together. If Sabrina disregarded the last half year, she had spent almost every day of that with someone else. Not today though. Even if she had said she would. But she could not think about Nick right now. Thinking about Nick led to unwanted thoughts about the Academy to Father Blackwood to her almost-expulsion to the Dark Lord to everything she truly wanted to forget.

If only for a moment.

Harvey returned to the living room with two big mugs in his hands, and handed her one before sitting back down. “So, I found hot chocolate. No marshmallows, I’m afraid. I finished those. And the whipped cream. The M&Ms. The—”

“I hope you’ve made an appointment with your dentist,” Sabrina said, smiling into her cup, then took a sip. Already drinkable, and just what she needed. A warm and sugary delight.

He scoffed, then drank from his mug too. “You’re one to talk.” 

 

***

 

After their warm and comforting drinks, they were able to move past the weird, to move past accommodating each other, and made their way into Harvey’s bedroom. It was different now. There were no more pictures of them. No more pictures of her at all. The dinosaur paper on his walls seemed so empty in comparison to what she was used to. He had hung up some sketches though. Inhuman faces and disfigured bodies. Monsters. Not as cute as the dinosaur wallpaper. Sabrina did not mention it. He probably would shut down, and they just moved past the weird. So she talked about simple things. Fun things. Movies. Books. All the interests they still had in common, even when they were worlds apart. With a soft sigh, Sabrina walked towards his desk, towards the window where she could overlook the moonless trees, when something colorful caught her eye.

She reached for it, then turned back to him with a wide smile. “Oh! Bean Boozled!” It had been years since she last tried those, and she could barely remember the flavors… other than that the disgusting ones were truly disgusting. She always wondered why the jelly beans were so popular, but here she was… giving them another try, knowing there was a fifty percent chance she would get fucked over. And she would be to blame. An ingenious product.

“I shouldn’t have bought those,” Harvey said, the regret apparent in his voice.

Sabrina opened the package, her smile turning into a wicked grin. One that got her a smile in return from him. “Come on, Harvey. Live a little.” He inched closer, not one to back down on such a wild dare, and pushed out his hand while she dropped a few jelly beans into her hand. Their smiles grew in anticipation. A multi-colored one for Harvey, and a blue one for her. Those couldn’t be too bad… right?

On the count of three, both Sabrina and Harvey shoved the jelly bean into their mouth and chewed like there was no tomorrow. Harvey scrunched up his face in disgust. “Stinky socks.”

“Toothpaste,” Sabrina said as she attempted not to laugh at his adorable face. Toothpaste was supposed to be a bad taste, but once the chemical flavor passed, a minty one lingered. And she could deal with that. At least it wasn’t barf, or stinky socks. 

“Thanks for nothing, ‘Brina,” Harvey grumbled with a simper, and reached for a bottle of water on his desk, gulping it down to rid himself of the jelly bean’s flavor. 

Sabrina shrugged, and put the box of candy back on his desk. “How do you even know what stinky socks taste like?”

“It says so on the box.”

“ _Sure_ , that’s it,” Sabrina grinned once more, her body leaning towards him without meaning to. She did not realize she was doing it until she noticed he was doing the same. Probably to tickle her or tease her as he had done many times in the past, but they weren’t together like that anymore. As recognition dawned on her face, it did on his too. Harvey cleared his throat, and stepped away from her, throwing her an awkward smile. She tapped her fingers on the desk, and he followed the noise, his eyes landing on something, because they lit up all of a sudden.

“Right, so I told you I was working on a comic, remember?” Harvey stretched his arm behind her, and grabbed a sketch book. “I made progress, if you’re interested?”

“Yeah, of course I am,” Sabrina said, and he opened the book to show her the characters and settings he had created. The main character. An eighteen year boy on the cusp of adulthood with a long sword in his hand. His younger brother behind him. A grim home covered by thorns and barb. Ahead of them was an army of golems causing destruction. A far too recent memory not so different from this drawing entered her mind, and it was the last thing she wanted to think about.

The golem she was responsible for. The destruction.

She had thought golems would have been easier to control than demons. They were the safer bet, but she was wrong. And she had almost lost everything she had been working towards. Yet,after almost reaching a goal then coming close to losing it all, it did nothing to satisfy her. Yeah, she wanted the Dark Lord gone, but then what? She wanted to be happy right now too. And she could have that… with Harvey. He was not part of all the messes that she had made, separate from the darkness and agendas that came with people in the witch world. Harvey was sweet and kind. He was there for her without question, without any hidden agendas, and he never thought anything wicked of her.

He was there for her. Always had been.

And she missed him so damn much.

Overcome with all these needs, Sabrina closed his sketchbook, removing the golems from her sight and mind, then raised her heels and drew Harvey to her puckered lips. He stiffened for only a second, but then the warmth of his hand was on her waist, pulling her further into the kiss, bringing back so many cherished memories of their mouths connecting. His enraptured breath brushing against her chin. His fingers digging into her skin. His body writhing underneath her touch. The thoughts sent her heart in overdrive. Sabrina wrapped her arms around his neck and she sighed in contentment like a blossomed flower closing its petals at the end of a sunny day. How could she have ever said goodbye to any of this? He was her home away from home. She deepened the kiss, finding herself entirely unable to resist any temptation, and he allowed her further access. Her breathing sped up as his soothing warmth engulfed her, but then Harvey pulled away from her.

No, she didn’t want that. She wasn’t ready for this to end just yet. Sabrina pecked his lips, trying to feel more of him once again, and whispered how she had missed him, but he took a decisive step away from her. That meant things had stopped. Sabrina sighed, opened her eyes, and found a very confused Harvey staring back at her.

“I miss you too, but… aren’t you with Nick?” Harvey asked as a deep frown appeared on his face.

Sabrina chewed on her lip while Harvey flattened the hair that she had ruffled mere seconds ago. She hoped she could make him see reason. “Do you still think about us?”

“Yeah, all the time. I didn’t just lose my brother. I lost you too. And I don’t know… I needed that break at first, but I was wrong.” Harvey said, the confusion disappearing from his face, the frown vanishing from his forehead, making way for a hopeful softness in his light brown eyes. “Did you and Nick break up?”

“No…”

“ _Oh._ ”

When he drew his arms together, closing off, she put her hands on them, trying to make him understand. “Witches and warlock aren’t like mortals, Harvey.”

“So I keep being told,” Harvey muttered as he eyed her hand. The confusion made a comeback, and this time it was accompanied with something else. Resentment? Shit, this was not how this was supposed to go. 

Sabrina tried again. “We play by different rules…”

“I don’t know what that means.”

She sighed. Why were boys this dimwitted? She kissed him, then told him that the rules were different for witches. Sabrina had almost forgotten she needed to be this straightforward with Harvey, but that was one of the things she loved about him, right? No hidden agendas. That meant for her too. Vulnerability. “Nick… He’d be ok with us,” she finally said.

“What? Being _together_?” Harvey scoffed, glancing down at her hands once more, and she moved them up to the tension he was collecting in his biceps.

Sabrina inclined her head faintly, eager to taste more of him, and drew him back to her lips with a tug of his crop top. “Exactly like that.”

 

**3**

The next day Sabrina found herself knocking on the door to a different house. This one was a towering carving in comparison, adorned in black and always glimmering from a vast distance, striking to her eyes in hours of light and darkness. Just like the boy who lived there. Well, whenever she was visiting. “Oh, didn’t think you’d still be coming over,” Nick said, after he opened the door, a book in one hand, and a look of surprise written all over his face. 

“Sorry about that,” Sabrina said as her mind went to Harvey, then closed the door behind her. The luminosity dimmed indoors, shadows creeping up in the corners of the main hall until they entered the parlor. Touching Nick’s arm, Sabrina stopped him from walking away. She let her fingers skim across his crepe shirt as she gave him hopeful eyes. Silky smooth. She supposed the light, wrinkled surface of his dark shirt was meant to give it a more leisure energy, but this didn’t even come close to what she wore at home on Sundays. Nick really had no off-days. “I meant to stop by yesterday, but technically I’m grounded, and after everything with Father Blackwood—I don’t know. When he said he would expel me. It was—”

“Scary?”

Sabrina knitted her brows together and nodded, the situation replaying in her mind once again. One time too many. “It was way too real.”

“Consequences are like that,” Nick said as he took Sabrina by the hand and sat down on the Prussian blue divan. She melted into his arm, and reclined along with him against the cold wall while he crossed his knees.

“I hate them.”

“The worst.” Nick brushed a lock of her hair behind her ear, then pecked her on the mouth. “But you’re better now?”

Sabrina released an appreciative sigh, thankful that Nick was not one to hold on to his grievances. Not towards her, anyway. “Yes, I am. Though I’m not looking forward to facing people at the Academy tomorrow. Not sure how that’ll go down.”

“Your aunts must loathe me.”

“No, they don’t. They’re more upset with me for repeating behavior they thought I had outgrown,” Sabrina muttered as she raised her hands and made air quotes. “Anyways, whatever. They don’t understand. Are you ok?”

“Actually, why did you want to create a golem?” Nick asked, then tilted his head, waiting for an answer.

Shit. Yeah, she couldn’t exactly tell him it was an experiment to see if she could control a golem, so she could create an army of them and use them to maybe get rid of the Dark Lord. She couldn’t tell him, right? Nick leaned on the more moderate side of things. He agreed with her father’s more modern and open-minded thinking, though… her father might not have been as modern as she had first thought. But Nick wasn’t there for the unacceptable and radical behavior that the witches and warlocks participated in in their community. That certainly worked in his favor. Then again, he did sign away his name to their Dark Lord. It put her in quite a pickle. Plus, he seemed to know whenever she was lying. It was _so_ annoying. “I was just curious if I could control it. Test the bounds of my power. That sorta stuff. Nothing more,” Sabrina gave a nervous chuckle.

“Then why the mystery? You know I would’ve helped from the very beginning.” Nick leaned closer, trying to get her to spill the details.

“I know. Just didn’t want you to get into trouble.” Sabrina shrugged as carelessly as she could. “But we were talking about you.”

“I, uhh, I got into some shit with my parents. Bad enough to warrant their presence.” Nick glanced away, lost in thought for a moment, and Sabrina had to bite her tongue. She was pleased he wasn’t pursuing his previous line of questioning, so she shouldn’t either. Boundaries, and stuff. “It wasn’t pretty. Apparently Father Blackwood had spoken to them too.”

“Ugh, _now_ he does his job. Couldn’t be bothered when I was asking him questions about vampires.”

Nick quirked his eyebrow, and focused on her again, his arm lowering to her hips. “You’re still convinced Dr. Cerberus is one?”

“Completely.” Sabrina narrowed her eyes, the conviction as clear as day. Exposing a vampire without alarming her aunt was harder than she thought, especially with all the bridges she had burned. Continued to burn. She refrained from sighing. No point in chewing on that. She simply had to do better, be better. “Just need to find a way to prove it.”

“I think he’s starting to get suspicious though.”

“Then I’ll have to be more covert,” Sabrina said thoughtfully, then tapped her fingers against her leg, and pressed her lips together. “Got any new ideas?”

“When do I not?” Nick’s mouth curved into a confident smirk, and she kissed it right off. Well, it actually grew bigger. But that was fine. “Oh, and if you’re looking to test your power, I finally found something legit on blood magic,” Nick said while he straightened his legs, then stood up and offered his arm. “Something about osmosis, if the translation is correct. Come on, I’ll show you.”

 

***

 

“This is not what I had in mind when you said power,” Sabrina said, grinning into Nick’s lips, then flipped her tousled locks away from her face, and traced her hungry mouth down his jawline to the curve of his neck. He tasted salty, both of them already burning with desire. Whenever she was with Nick, she experienced a loss of her inhibitions. He heightened all of her senses. She wasn’t sure if it was him, the magic between them, or both. But with even the slightest touches, Sabrina could feel her skin prickling.

Nick parted his lips, and sucked in his breath. While his fingers curled around Sabrina’s underwear, she straddled and clenched around him. “Neither did I,” he rasped. “But I’m not one to complain.” With a quick fling, he was on top of her, immediately taking away any and all distance. Sabrina splayed her hands across his naked shoulders, then made her way down to his tautening abdomen. Their tongues connected once more, rolling over each other, their figures grinding together smoothly. Another frisson of commanding heat flared through her, rooting itself in her chest and groin. Sabrina moaned, baring her neck to him, desperately in need of more air, in need of a release. A mantle of steam had appeared on the windows in Nick’s bedroom that now veiled the darkened forest outside the house, and she knew she had to get something else out of the way first.

“ _Hm_ , Nick, wait. Can we hit pause?” Sabrina gasped.

“Uhh, ok.” He halted his movements, his face returning in her line of sight. Flushed and glowing, with reddened lips, he was hard to resist. “Why?”

She drew her eyebrows together and straightened herself slightly against the padded headboard of his bed, putting some space between them. “There’s something I need to tell you.”

“Really? Right _this_ minute?” Nick grazed his teeth over his plump bottom lip, holding Sabrina’s gaze. The touch was concurrent with the slither of his nails, going left to right from her knees to her inner thighs. And when their mouths melted together, his fingers slid down her underwear. Sabrina slackened, whatever resistance she had already beginning to crumble.

But then the image of Harvey flashed in front of her eyes, and that did the trick. She softly shook her head, then nudged him. “Nick, I’m serious.”

“Alright, I’m sorry. All ears.” He pecked her lips, breathing out heavily, then allowed the space they now both required.

She wasn’t sure how to bring it up. It was partially why she hadn’t yet, multiple romantic relationships weren’t exactly the field in which she excelled, not yet anyway, but she knew she had to tell him. “It’s, _hmm_ , it’s about Harvey.”

“The mortal is on your mind right now?” Nick asked as his forehead creased.

Sabrina laughed nervously, and shook her head. “It’s not like that. I—We… kissed.” 

“What?” Nick leaned away from her.

“I went to see him. We talked for a while, and we were able to connect like we had in the past. Then, before I knew it, I was kissing him.” Sabrina replayed the situation in her mind, trying to make Nick understand what happened, realizing maybe she should have picked a different moment for this discussion. But earlier he had been upset with her for not showing up. It didn’t seem like the right time then either, and she could not _not_ tell him. 

“Oh.”

Sabrina frowned at the lack of responses from Nick, but if he wouldn’t then she would. “I told Harvey that it was fine. I mean, that you and I are still together, and that he and I could be together too. That _that_ was fine. After many, many, questions, Harvey was able to wrap his head around it.”

“Right.” Nick’s voice faltered, which confused her. Plus the fact that he wasn’t looking at her anymore. But she had noticed the glassy stare before it hardened. That couldn’t be good.

“We _are_ still fine, right?” Sabrina scooted closer towards Nick, brushing her fingers over his shoulder.

He inclined his head slowly, meeting her gaze. “We are.”

“Then… why doesn’t it seem that way?” Sabrina asked, observing the tightness in his expression, the tension in his arms.

“I would’ve expected a head’s up, or something.” Nick stood up from the bed, seeming unsure of what to do, which in turn made her feel uncertain. He was supposed to be ok with this. He had told her so many times he was. “So that’s where you were yesterday? Instead of here? Instead of letting me know you weren’t coming?”

By herself on his king-sized bed, she felt very small. And very naked. She wrapped herself in his silken sheets. “I’m sorry, I should’ve let you know sooner,” she whispered, but he still looked away from her. A slight quiver occurred in the pit of her stomach. She had messed up.

Nick finally turned to her, his arms crossed, and agreed with her words. “You could’ve called. Astral projection is entirely possible in our realm.”

“Are you mad?” Biting her lip, Sabrina stood up and approached him.

“No. I don’t know.” Nick raised his shoulders slightly, but the hardened look on his face said different. “Why did you go to him?”

“Like I said, I really just needed to be away from all the shit I had created. I was missing—” Sabrina reached for his hand, but he raised it to rub the back of his neck.

“Away from me too?”

“No. It’s not like that,” Sabrina said with a frown, annoyed that he was being standoffish with her, not understanding where this was coming from. “You’re one of the few good things.”

“There’s plenty that’s good about our world, Sabrina.” Nick said brusquely, giving her a tight smile, and she plunked herself down on the side of his bed. Frustration building inside of her. “There’s nothing quite like magic. Almost nothing. The bonds that bind us are in part because of the violence done against us _by_ the mortals you love so much. And… it’s _our_ world in which sharing is more than acceptable. It does not try to restrict, control, and shame like the mortal one does.”

“No, that’s true,” Sabrina admitted. She already knew all those things though. “It’s just—Living in two worlds is hard. Even when I’m not supposed to be. Sometimes my mind gets clouded, sometimes unfairly so. I guess I was having a bad day.”

Nick sighed as he neared her, then took a seat next to her. “Yes, well, you weren’t the only one who was having a bad day. All the shit I got from Father Blackwood after you left. And then my parents.”

As he continued explaining his feelings, something started to click inside her mind. “Nick… are you jealous?” Sabrina squeezed his hand, which he had allowed her to take this time, and she had to stop herself from smiling. He wasn’t above those things, and that was somewhat reassuring.

“What? That’s not what we were talk—”

Sabrina lifted her legs up the bed, and shifted her weight to her knees, so she could face Nick. “Are you? Because I thought you were fine with Harvey.”

“It’s just—You went to him for comfort. I know I can’t compete with him, but I thought I mattered…” Nick said after hesitating, and she brushed her thumb over his hand. All the pieces of the puzzle falling into place, and she no longer felt reassured.

She had made him feel small. This… was so complicated, and she had said that she was no good with taking on more than one relationship at a time. One was hard enough. Figuring out emotions was tough. Hers, but more so of others. But she couldn’t deny herself. Not anymore. Sabrina knitted her brows together, her face serious. Then she took both his hands, and made him face her too, their eyes locked, so she could make this perfectly clear. “You _do_ matter. I haven’t felt this way before with anyone else, Nick. But it’s not a competition, right?”

“Sure.”

“And the other day, I just needed to breathe. It wasn’t about you or him. It was about me, I just needed to get away.” Sabrina stared at him, hoping he would understand, and her chest grew so tight it became hard to breathe. When Nick finally nodded, she curled her arms around his neck, the tension still palpable in her stiff fingers. She offered him a soft peck on his mouth, and as he responded her hands found his face. Holding on to him, she kissed him with unfaltering intent, imprinting her words on his lips. “Besides, I’m getting comfort from you right now too.”

“Alright…”

When his hands made its way to her waist again, she was pleased. Reassured enough to make another joke, and lighten the situation. “And you’re right. I should’ve called. I should’ve let you know. I won’t disappear like that again. I’ll cancel on you properly next time.”

“What a relief,” Nick said as he shook his head, then rolled his eyes. No tightness, no hardness, no distance, and she sighed. The unwanted quivers slowly disappearing from the pit of her stomach. 

She kissed him once more, but there was something else. She needed to hear it before she could move on. She needed to know she hadn’t completely messed up. Aunt Hilda had always insisted on talking through issues, and Sabrina thought overkill was a thing, but it seemed necessary here for once. Well, it was for her. “But… are you sure you’re still ok with this whole sharing thing?”

“Would it matter if I wasn’t?” Nick asked, and that just messed up her stomach all over again.

She frowned, and plopped down on the bed. “Of course it would.”

“I thought there was something to choosing and committing to just one person like the mortals do,” Nick responded to her question after what felt like an eternity, and she chewed on her lip as she listened. She had not expected this at all, but could she blame him? When it came to—“But even in matters of the heart, there’s really no reason to limit yourself. And unlike the mortals, unlike even our Dark Lord, I would never try to restrict or control you.”

Sabrina pressed her fingers to her lips, trying not to smile too widely, but that was the perfect answer. It was strange. Almost unimaginable that she would be this excited about being in a relationship with two people. But no more burdens. Not for the time being, anyway. Not until the next minute, when she realized something else, and her smile was wiped off. “What about you?”

“What about me?”

“Do you… want to be with others?” Sabrina asked, and tightened her hold on the silken sheets that were barely covering her body. 

Unexpectedly, it was the thing that made Nick smile again. Smirk even, his signature look returning. And Sabrina frowned slightly, fearing the worst, but then he pulled her out of the linens and into his arms. Chest to chest. Their ardent energies melding. “Greedy little thing. No, not right now. My heart is pretty full at the moment, receiving something I never thought it—I could have. Unless that mortal of yours is willing. Then _other_ parts of me could make room.”

Sabrina laughed, taken aback, her heart floating once more. “You’re crazy.”

“I’m as sane as they come. It’s the mortals who are out of their minds.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm with Nick. Also, my interest in Sabrina/Prudence lowkey bled into this chapter, lol. This is what happens when you multiship.  
> Hope you enjoyed the chapter though!


	5. The Summertide Solstice

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Still at odds with herself, Sabrina tries to find balance...

**1**

At the summit of Greendale’s isolated mountain, Harvey and Sabrina were seated next to each other inside his red pickup truck. The striations on the trees were shaped around them like a vignette, curving around the sides of the scenic view and opening up above without a cloud in the sky. The golden silhouette of the sun marked the roofs of the segregated houses within the heart of the woodland. Flickers of colorful birds caught Harvey’s eyes. With his face towards the light blue sky, she could see all the signs. The telltale affection she carried for him, and how distant they had been for so long. Her heart felt the weight of everything she had been going through, and had not spoken about with others.

As she stared out the window with him, windows that were magically covered with blackout blinds, so no one would see them together, she dragged a knee underneath her and sighed. A new song came on the radio that reminded Sabrina of her last summer. It was almost a year ago, but life couldn’t have been more different then. It was easier. She was carefree and happy. Spending her days with Harvey, Susie, and Roz at the air-conditioned mall or by the lake. Anything to escape the heat. The only worry on her mind was her then-upcoming birthday that would mess things up. As it had. And now… her life was insane. She had two boyfriends, and had a hard time balancing them. Even after patching things up with Nick, she could not rid herself of guilt. She had damaged her reputation at the Academy, and the work load kept piling. Finals coming closer. Then there was her modest plan to destroy the Dark Lord. Everything was hard, but that last thing was grating on her.

Life was starting to feel like it had after her birthday. Restricted. Out of her control. Chaotic. And with the loss of some of her closest friends, with her aunts and cousin’s warranted skepticism, with Sabrina actively distancing herself from those she cared about, she had become… not like her usual self. She was still as resolved, still as willing to take risks, and she was proud of all she had accomplished, but she could also feel herself splintering underneath.

“You’re spacing out again, ‘Brina. _Sabrina_?”

A warm hand caressed her arm, and she glanced to Harvey. “Hmm, what?”

“Where were you just now?” Harvey asked, and rolled down his window an inch, allowing a soft summer breeze to drift inside his pickup truck.

“Oh, sorry. I, uhh, I was contemplating some stuff.”

“I could tell. Wanna talk about it?” Harvey asked, and she bobbed her head faintly. She did, actually. Needed to, before the cracks became visible to others. It took her a moment. She didn’t know where to start. So much had happened, so much he didn’t know about yet. Her voice cracked, and she might have grown flustered, her eyes might have welled up, but she told him about everything. Especially that last thing that had been bothering her. The Dark Lord, her plans to take him down, and how it wasn’t working out. When she was done, Sabrina let out a deep sigh, slumping her shoulders and averting her gaze. The song on the radio echoed through her figure until Harvey entwined their fingers, and finally spoke again, “That sounds really grueling. Dangerous. And… these perplexing methods. What does Nick think?”

She raised her shoulders. “I haven’t told him yet.”

“Oh. Why haven’t you?” Harvey tilted his head, and his light, brown eyes bored into her. “Don’t you trust him?”

“I do, but it might be a bit too… extreme for him.”

“That’s because it _is_ extreme.” Harvey squeezed her hand gently, but that was not the point of her disclosure. “Maybe you need to hear it from more than one person,” Harvey continued, and she glanced away from him, back to the beautiful sky. “Come on, ‘Brina. You’re only a teenager. A kid in comparison to this almighty lord of yours. You said you’ve seen him?”

“Yes. But I’m powerful.” Sabrina disentangled their hands, and sat up straighter, taking up more space. “Powerful enough for the Dark Lord to want me so badly, to force me to sign away my name. Powerful enough to have stopped the thirteen witches from destroying Greendale all by myself. Not my aunts. Not any of the other witches or warlocks in our coven. _Me_. So if I keep working hard enough, and with the right tools—”

“Wasn’t that with his power?”

“I’ll be able to take him down,” Sabrina ignored Harvey’s comment. 

Harvey leaned back against the cushion, grazing the side of his neck, as he scrutinized her defensive stance. “Look, I’m in your corner. I’m just saying you need more people. You don’t have to do all of this on your own. No one can take down an ancient authority by themselves. Our history books are full of battle stories, right? And the ones that are successful were combined efforts with allies.” 

“Like in _World War Z_? That was a shit movie though,” Sabrina said, willing to concede. He said he was on her side. That was what she wanted, right? Someone who would listen. And maybe he had a point. She had been fixating on the Dark Lord, and it had led her to making some dumb mistakes. The destruction of the Academy because of her creation was at the top of that list. That unwanted spirit was another. And now… she was discovering dangerous blood magic. She needed to stop making mistakes. Maybe she needed to spread the weight.

Harvey shook his head, the corner of his mouth quirking up into a smile. “Actually, I was thinking more along the lines of the Battle of Waterloo, the Battle of the Marne, Dunkirk. No, that last one wasn’t really a success. But the Syria-Lebanon Campaign, the Battle of Stalingra—”

“Ok, you lost me.” Sabrina nudged Harvey, and gave him a small smile in return. His hyper fixation with history brought with it endless hours of war talk. Though it had taught her a useful thing or two.

“My point being, Roz and Susie could be helpful. Last time I spoke with them, they told me they were delving into their past with the otherworldly stuff.”

“Harvey, no,” Sabrina said with a sigh. How could she possibly involve them against the Dark Lord? _They_ were mere teenagers out of their depth, even when they had a minor connection with magic. “Besides, no one seems to truly want to challenge the Dark Lord? Everyone just does his bidding through Father Blackwood. How in the world am I supposed to get people on my side?”

After clearing his throat, Harvey wrapped his arm around Sabrina, and held her tightly. “You’ve got me. I’m pretty certain you’ve got Roz and Susie too. And… I can’t believe I’m saying this, but Nick seems pretty loyal.”

“He is—has been.”

“So… then give him a chance,” Harvey said, then waved his hand in the air, as if he was waving away the idea. 

“I’m just afraid, Harvey.” Sabrina glanced at the empty dashboard for a few seconds, then stared back at him. He waited for her to continue. Harvey listened to her like she needed him to. He always had. “Afraid that people will get hurt again because of me. I made such a mess of things last time. I can’t seem to stop making messes. And I keep dragging people down with me. I don’t want what happened to you and Tommy to happen again. It—”

His expression hardened, and it made Sabrina shut up. Bending towards her once more, Harvey insisted, “That wasn’t your fault. You didn’t kill Tommy.”

“Well, I didn’t make things any better either.”

“Hm. I can’t promise you things won’t go to shit this time around, but you know better now.”

“That might be the problem.”

“We’ll find a different way,” Harvey said with a soothing voice, entirely sure of himself, then tightened his hold on her. Wherever his confidence came from, it helped her slow things down in her head a little. “Give it time, and you shouldn’t put so much blame on yourself.”

“I’ll try. Thank you.” She lifted her chin, so she could reach his lips to press a soft kiss. “I missed this—you. I love you, Harvey Kinkle.” Her words made him smile, and he returned the affection, their mouths finding one another until they moved in sync and she began to lose track of time.

Maybe Sabrina had changed more than she thought. She still took risks, but not where they seemed to matter most. She had to include the people she cared about, not keep them at bay when all they wanted was to connect with her. That meant Nick too. She should have given him the trust, given her love, like he was giving her. It explained the guilt she was still carrying around with her even after they made up. And now she knew how to fix one of the hardships in her life. Well, she hoped.

Moving away from Harvey, she broke their kiss. “Oh, I have to go. I’m sorry. I’ll message you later.”

 

***

 

Sabrina rushed to Nick’s home in the hopes of finding him there so they could talk. There was much they needed to talk about, something that she wanted to say back to him. But she waited in front of a closed door. He must have stayed at the Academy. They had made no plans this weekend, and he usually only went home when they had. She knew this, but she had hoped…

Then it had to wait. With a heavy sigh, Sabrina tramped miles through the woods on her way to her own house. A brisk breeze kept Sabrina’s hands locked in her coat. She couldn’t return to the Academy just yet, having made plans with her aunts. The new, green leaves rustled all around her, softening whenever she stopped to look around, as if they were talking about her. An unusual twinkle caught her attention, something that wasn’t from the mortal world. Sabrina raised her eyebrows, but moved there for closer inspection.

With the blink of an eye, a myriad of leaves were ripped apart from the branches and fluttered together, forming a ring. It was an almost hypnotizing moment, but Sabrina knew better. A figure materialized inside the circle, then the leaves fell down. It was Agatha. Now what did she want?

“There you are. I’ve been looking for you,” Agatha said, approaching Sabrina. With each step forward the rim of her flowing, diaphanous dress became more dampened by the dewy, green grass. Sabrina was going to say something, but then… why bother? It was Agatha. “I need your help.”

“Oh, ok?” Sabrina narrowed her eyes and crossed her arms, no longer bothered by the wind. “What with?”

Agatha walked to Sabrina’s side, and Sabrina turned along with her, making sure she could follow Agatha’s every move. Agatha’s mouth curved into a sly grin, its darkness matching the shade of her lipstick. “A spell. To curse a very wicked man.”

“What did he do?”

“Tried to hurt small children.”

Sabrina considered that as she tapped her fingers against her arm. “Oh, alright. But why do you need my help?”

“Well, you care so much about small children, don’t you? They’re all innocent. Poor small children.” Agatha raised her arms in defense for the children, the grin no longer apparent on her face, only intent. Sabrina just hadn’t figured out what kind of intent. Not yet. “Plus, the curse requires a second participant.”

“Why not go to Prudence or Dorcas?”

“They’re busy, and you _owe_ me a favor.” Agatha stepped closer and quirked her eyebrow impatiently, attempting to intimidate Sabrina with her length. It wasn’t working. Sabrina had been short all her life. Tall people weren’t scary. “Now, are you helping, or are you just full of shit?”

“Fine. When?”

“We can do it right here. I came equipped.” Agatha said, then mumbled a few words and waved her hands, conjuring up the materials. A bowl of mud. A bowl of water. A figure made of copper. A lot of effort went into that. That meant it was a powerful curse. Black metal wire. Athama, a ritualistic knife. After placing the items on the ground, Agatha casted a circle around them, sealing their magic.

“What kind of curse is this?”

“Oh, an infertility one,” Agatha said, then revealed a folded paper, but kept it underneath one of the bowls. Sabrina kneeled down, and scrutinized the materials while Agatha prepared herself. Sabrina wasn’t against an infertility curse. Men deserved that. A better curse would be to take their libidos away, especially if they targeted small children. But something didn’t seem right. Agatha handed Sabrina the black metal wire, a smile playing on Agatha’s face, and Sabrina pressed her lips together. No, something wasn’t right here.

“We’re almost done. Repeat after me—”

“What’s this?” Sabrina took the folded paper away from Agatha, whose expression closed up. But Sabrina could see the vein popping in Agatha’s neck. The paper was crucial. She unfolded it. A drawing of a monster. Just a drawing. But… it was familiar. She had seen it before.

In one of Harvey’s sketchbooks.

“ _What_ is this?” Sabrina glared at Agatha, who was crumbling rosemary in one of her hands to protect herself. “You’re cursing Harvey? What the hell! I told you to leave him alone.”

Agatha jumped to her feet. Again with the needing to assert herself through her height. “Cursing isn’t killing. He’s dangerous, whether your blinded eyes see that or not. It’s only a matter of time—”

“For Satan’s sake, Agatha.” Sabrina threw her head back, and got off her knees, her supposedly blinded eyes noticing a squirrel looking for food behind Agatha. “Do you have a death wish?”

“You used my sisters against me last time. That won’t happen again. And _you_ are alone now.”

“Actually, we’re here. What’s going on exactly?” Prudence said out of nowhere, standing a feet away from them together with Dorcas.

Sabrina swept her arm from them to Agatha, a feverish current collecting at her fingertips, begging to be discharged. “Are you two in on this?”

“If only someone could enlighten me on ‘this’”? Prudence gave an insincere smile.

“Agatha’s trying to curse Harvey, and trying to implicate me at the same time,” Sabrina said through gritted teeth. 

Dorcas clapped her hands together, then brought them to her face. “Oh, Agatha. That’s wicked.”

“If only you did it well,” Prudence stared at her nails, not deeming either Sabrina or Prudence worthy enough to look at.

And Sabrina wasn’t having it. “Excuse me—”

“Look, this is boring.” Prudence raised the palm of her hand, then focused on Agatha. “My father wants to see us. Something about Sabbath tomorrow. Are you coming, Agatha?”

Agatha began to move, but Sabrina shoved her arm out, letting them all know this wasn’t done yet. There was a line, and Agatha had crossed it. Fucking again. “No way, you better believe—”

“What do you want, Sabrina? Would you like to get expelled? Because I can most definitely make that happen. Just give me a reason. Give my father a reason,” Prudence snapped, and Sabrina drew in her breath so she could stop herself from responding, both physically and verbally. Agatha grinned again, and sauntered to her sisters while Prudence continued, “You know, I oughta thank you for your screw ups. How does it feel being at the bottom?”

No. Sabrina wasn’t having it. Locking her sight on their venomous eyes, Sabrina concentrated on what she had learned a few days ago. Her fingers began to tremble. It didn’t go unnoticed by the Weird Sisters, who looked at her with widening smiles and grins. So Sabrina smiled back. As she dropped down to her knees, Sabrina canted a spell underneath her breath to transport the squirrel into her hand. When it appeared, Sabrina grabbed the ritualistic knife from the ground, and cut the squirrel’s belly open. Warm blood gushed on her hand, and after dropping the dying creature, she rubbed the fluids on her other hand too. Twisted coils deep within Sabrina straightened until they were pulled taut. She breathed out slowly and felt her eyes changing, blackening like it had last time, as the dark red was absorbed into her skin. Osmosis. Bewildered, the Weird Sisters joined hands and took a few steps back. Sabrina took one forward.

Time for test drive number two.

After Sabrina thrusted both her arms out, she clenched one hand while she lowered the other. Venomous eyes transformed into frightened ones. The Weird Sisters became rooted to the spot, except for Agatha who Sabrina made stagger until Agatha fell down on her knees. Prudence spoke, but Sabrina brought a finger to her mouth as she tilted her head, whispering the commands in her mind, and bending them to her will. Now that they were unable to speak and move, Sabrina upheld Agatha’s favorite intimidation technique and towered over her.

“Here I am, Agatha. All by myself,” Sabrina said, her voice coming out pleased. She _was_ pleased. The test drive was going well. A success. And that was more than Agatha could say for herself. “So, I’ll repeat myself, do you have a death wish?”

“N-no,” Agatha bleated, clamping her jaws together, struggling against the invisible bonds Sabrina had created.

“Harvey is off limits.” Sabrina held Agatha’s eyes. She wasn’t actually going to kill Agatha again, but she needed her to understand that Sabrina wasn’t going to be messed with either. Neither would Harvey. Naturally, with the Weird Sisters, threats were in order. It was their second language. “So _don’t_ tempt me.”

“Sabrina?” Nick’s voice rang from behind her.

 

***

 

The shadows of the trees blended into blackness of the night, and Sabrina let out a deep sigh as Nick sunk to his knees. The power she absorbed from the blood had heightened all her senses, an electrifying liquid that transcended physical matter as the echoes in the woodland made her quiver. Noises that were so faint during the day always seemed to increase in volume at night. A steadily upward flow. The twigs that shattered underneath them. Somewhere in the distance Sabrina heard the tottering stream of water shivering as it crashed into the rocks. The rhythmic callings of an owl up in a tree. The leaves that swished and hissed as the branches brawled with the roaring wind. Biting her lip, Sabrina raked her nails through Nick’s curls while she drowned out all the sounds of nature with her shallow breathing and broken moans.

Once storm clouds had gathered and drops of water drizzled down, Sabrina and Nick fled from the forest and rushed to her house, where they hid from the rainfall on the back porch. Just in time, because it began to pour, a feverish storm brewing. They performed a drying-incantation, then leaned against the wooden railing, and stared quietly at the vast land of shade and secrecy that surrounded the Spellman residence. It had taken Sabrina a few minutes for her heart to stop racing after all the excitement it had had earlier. First Harvey, then came the Weird Sisters, and soon Nick followed. It was a lot to balance, especially if they didn’t see eye to eye. Maybe something had to be done about that. As a precaution, so Sabrina could spread the weight.

“What about Father Blackwood?” Nick broke the silence between them with his question. 

Sabrina shrugged. “Should be fine. I used a particular… conversation against Prudence.”

“You’re really something, Sabrina Spellman. You know that?” Nick slid an arm around her waist, resting against the railing with his back, and pulled her into his embrace.

“Thank you,” Sabrina said, her features softening as her mouth began to dry. “I, uhh, was actually looking for you. There’s something I wanted to talk to you about.”

“Should I be worried again?”

“No.” Sabrina laughed a little longer than she meant to, then shook her head. It was weird that she felt nervous. It was not the first time she had confessed such a thing. She had said it hours ago to Harvey, so then why was she making such a big deal out of it now? “It’s about something you said to me a while ago… something I have not said back yet.”

“ _Oh_ …” 

She put the palms of her hands on his chest, her fingers drawing unconscious circles, and felt heat rise to her cheeks. “I love you too.”

Nick canted his head towards her, his jaws tensing together, steadily keeping her gaze. “You do?” His thumb grazed the shape of her mouth, making her heart race all over again. After she nodded in confirmation, he leaned closer, and captured her lips. His smile was palpable. “I didn’t know your kisses could feel _even_ better. I was wrong.”

He kissed her again, this time deeply, swirling his tongue around hers. Before she would become unbothered by the cold outside, Sabrina stopped Nick. “Wait, there’s more. About the Dark Lord. Oh, and Harvey.”

“Ok, I’m intrigued. The mortal first.”

Sabrina didn’t know how to put this. It was… truly outside of her comfort zone. “I think we should spend more time together. The three of us.”

“Spend more time together, _how_?”

“Not in a bed,” Sabrina said, and rolled her eyes. 

“It can be outside of a bed too,” Nick said with a smirk, referring back to their recent wildlife adventures. Sabrina snorted. Of course he would say that. “What do you mean then?”

“I don’t know. You’re my boyfriend. He’s my boyfriend. You’re both important to me, so maybe it’s better for the more important parts of my worlds to be connected? And you suggested a while back that we should hang out together? I think it might be a good idea.”

“Why’s that?”

She dropped her arms to her sides, trying to find the words. “Because… I still haven’t gotten completely used to it.”

“Having two boyfriends?”

“Yeah…”

“The mortal has always been a part of our relationship. I knew what I was signing up for,” Nick said, and rubbed the small of her back.

Sabrina winced. “See, that doesn’t help alleviate—”

“I’m saying I don’t mind. We can hang out with the mortal.”

“Well, are you ever going to call him by his name?”

“No.” Nick pecked her lips with a grin. “Even I have my limits.”

With the roll of her eyes, she canted towards him completely, the weight of both their bodies against the railing of the porch, and kissed him slowly, smothering his self-congratulatory chuckle. When she was almost out of breath, and had forgotten about one hardship, it seemed as good a time as any to bring up the other one. “So, about the Dark Lord.”

 

**2**

Back at Dr. Cerberus’ bookshop, diner, and coffee place in one, Sabrina nestled in Nick’s arm when she felt the strain of her tartan miniskirt. Sabrina had chosen a table in the back, concealed from possible prying eyes, though Sabrina was certain that witches and warlocks would not step a foot inside. They weren’t one to usually mingle with the mortals. After she attempted to pull her skirt down her leg, they glanced at the menu and decided on the milkshakes. _Death by Brownie_ and _Staken, Not Stirred_. It was so glaringly obvious that Dr. Cerberus was hiding in plain sight as a vampire, but the fact that Sabrina could not find the proof without crossing boundaries was just so aggravating.

A group of jocks entered the crimson cafe, and the jangle of cups and a muted chime of voices followed soon. School was out. It wouldn’t be long before Harvey would arrive. Much to her surprise, it had been far easier to convince Harvey to hang out with her and Nick together. If it had been her, it would have taken way more effort. So Sabrina was a little nervous. She wanted this to go well. She wanted her boyfriends to get along. Nope. That still was not _not_ weird, Sabrina thought and scrunched up her face.

By the time Harvey showed up, Sabrina and Nick had already started drinking their shakes. As he walked up to their table, hesitation clouded his features. Sabrina smiled at him, and Harvey bent down, pressing a kiss to her lips like he had always done before. A faint flush crept over her face, all too aware that she was still snuggling against Nick, who had to watch that go down. It had been a while ago when Sabrina watched Prudence and Nick kiss, and she remembered vividly that she wasn’t a big fan of it. She wasn’t sure if her jealousy extended solely to Prudence, or if she would feel that way with anyone who kissed Nick. Whatever the answer, she imagined Nick must experience an inkling of discomfort, especially now that she knew that he got jealous too, and she didn’t want to rub that in. Not in Nick’s face, not in Harvey’s face. She hadn’t thought this through. Maybe hanging out together wasn’t the best idea.

“Uhh, hi,” Harvey said to Nick, then sat down next to Sabrina on the semicircular sofa. She had chosen that table for more than one reason. This way she avoided picking a side to sit on. Shit, having two boyfriends was so much more complicated than Nick had made it out to be. 

Nick tilted his head back, his hand rising from the table slightly. “Mortal.”

“The name’s Harvey.”

“What makes you think I’ve forgotten that?” Nick said, fingers curling around his chocolate shake, which he then brought to his mouth.

Well, this was off to a great start. Sabrina turned towards Nick, eyes wide, not sure what the hell to do. “Nick… Play nice.”

Glancing at Sabrina, a teasing smirk appeared on Nick’s face. “Surely _Harvey_ can take a little heat.”

“I can. It’s cool,” Harvey said as he shrugged his jean jacket off his shoulder.

“Hot,” Nick said flatly. 

Harvey frowned and peered at Sabrina whose lips had parted, then he returned his stare to Nick. “What?”

Nick put the milkshake back on the table, and waved his hand in the air languidly. “If I have to explain it, then it loses its appeal.”

“ _Anyways_ , we got milkshakes.” Sabrina pointed at hers, then shoved the menu towards Harvey. “Do you know what you want?”

So their hang started out a little rocky. It was a little weird. A little confrontational. And maybe a little frivolous, though Sabrina wasn’t sure whether Harvey saw it like that too. And by the time their drinks had finished, she had run out of all the standard topics they could be talking about. Common interests and all. They were both guys, surely they had more common interests, right? Sabrina didn’t mean to stereotype, but… seriously. They should be trying harder. Not waiting on men to make a difference in the world, Sabrina reached for her bag and removed a protection amulet. It was something she had worked on together with Nick, something for Harvey to ward off possible attempts to hurt him. After Agatha, Sabrina was not taking any more chances. She handed it to him, explained what it was for, and that kind of got the vibe to where she wanted it to be.

“What do mortals do for fun?” Nick asked after the conversation died down again.

Harvey put his weight on the table with his elbow, canting towards her and Nick. “We watch movies? Sabrina loves horror movies.”

“Hm, yes, horror.” Sabrina beamed. 

Then, bringing his other hand to his chest, Harvey said, “I’m personally not a huge fan.”

“You’re not?” Nick asked, a golden gleam taking hold in his dark brown eyes.

Sabrina shook her head in disbelief, especially with all the current artwork she had seen in his bedroom. “Still? You should be more accustomed to it by now!”

“Well, finding out you’re a witch certainly explained a lot,” Harvey raised his eyebrow, holding Sabrina’s gaze until she had to smile. 

“That’s not what I meant.”

“Let’s see one. I never have,” Nick said as he flattened his hand on the table. Tapping his fingers, his gleaming eyes moved from Sabrina to Harvey. “You can sit between the two of us if you get scared. Sabrina and I will protect you from the monsters.”

Sabrina squinted her eyes, and nudged him. “My, you’re so charitable, Nick.”

“Who says I won’t name a price?”

“Uhh…” Harvey blinked a few times, the confusion apparent on his face, and Sabrina thought it was endearing. He was new to Nick, and Nick’s bluntness took some getting used to. “What are you two talking about? Mostly him, what’s _he_ talking about?”

“Nothing,” Sabrina said immediately.

But apparently that didn’t ward Nick off. “Well, Sabrina told me to play nice,” he said, then a slow smirk crept up his face. He leaned towards Harvey, his warmth enclosing Sabrina while her knee touched Harvey’s. Her face flushed as she thought back to the night Nick had kissed Prudence. The night they _both_ had kissed Prudence. “I’m playing nice.”

“By flirting with me?” Harvey asked.

Nick tilted his head, showing a certain innocence Sabrina knew was merely a charade. “Is that considered ill-mannered in the mortal world?”

“No?” Harvey said, then glanced at Sabrina who gave him a nervous smile.

 

***

 

They didn’t walk to the cinema together. A precaution that was more of a hassle, but she shouldn’t be seen with Harvey, and outside on the streets the chance to get spotted was bigger than in a mortal establishment. After Sabrina and Nick bought their tickets to _A Nightmare on Elm Street_ , they headed inside to get more sweets only to find Harvey already standing in front of the counter. Wafts of freshly popped corn infiltrated her nostrils, sweet and salty, and Sabrina resolved that she was in the mood for a balanced mixture as she stood between Nick and Harvey.

When Harvey ordered some packs from the rows of brightly colored candy, Nick spoke up again, “You’re a sweet tooth too, huh?”

“Uhh, yeah. You too?”

“I’m coming to the conclusion I might have a thing for them?” Nick said, and she felt his hand on the small of her back. She rolled her eyes. That was so corny. But it firmly planted a smile on her face, so maybe it had worked. “So what’s this movie about then?”

“Sabrina hasn’t talked your ear off yet?” Harvey answered before Sabrina could.

“Hey!” She said instead.

Nick laughed at that, as he stroked her back soothingly. And Harvey grinned, seemingly pleased with the joke he had made, though his eyes did wander to Nick’s arm for a second. Sabrina didn’t know what to do about it, so she did nothing. They hadn’t established any ground rules, and why shouldn’t either of her boyfriends be allowed to touch her? It was just… weird given the circumstances. But she wasn’t the only one who ignored it. Clearing his throat, Harvey gave Nick an elaborate explanation of the plot as they walked to the seats. For someone who claimed not to love horrors, Harvey sure was invested. 

They ended up completely in the back with rows and rows of red velvet seats in front of them. Most of them weren’t occupied. It was a weekday, and niche horror movies usually did not attract a wide audience. Though Sabrina had expected 80’s horror to attract more than the lonely man up front, and the two boys on the side. Whatever, it worked in their advantage. Sabrina took off her coat, and handed it to Harvey who placed it on the empty seat beside him. With Harvey on one side of Sabrina, and Nick on the other side, Harvey had elected not to take Nick up on his offer.

The movie began, and Sabrina could anticipate the sequence of the scenes. She had seen this movie so many times now, yet it never got boring, especially not when she mocked it. “They’re going to have sex, you know what that means,” Sabrina said in a hushed tone to Harvey, who leaned closer towards her to listen.

“One of them is going to die.”

Sabrina nodded, resting on their shared arm rest. “The girl, of course, because sexism.”

“Freddie is sexist?” Harvey asked.

“Ssh, don’t say his name yet! That’s a spoiler.”

“Oh, shit, sorry.”

“Sure, you two are real subtle,” Nick interjected, and Sabrina bit her bottom lip, smiling apologetically. “In any case if these movies are so predictable… why watch them?”

“Because ‘Brina wants to,” Harvey raised his shoulder, and rested against his seat. 

“Because they’re ridiculously fun! Even when they’re dumb and predictable,” Sabrina leaned towards Nick, who quirked his eyebrow. 

“A real acquired taste.”

Nick sat, engrossed in what was occurring on the silver screen, barely noticing, or simply not minding Sabrina’s attentive stare. It was his first time at a cinema, which was something quite special, something she could hardly remember. Though Nick was never one to betray his thoughts or emotions, she was becoming better at learning how to decipher his mannerisms.

“Oh, that bathtub scene was great,” Nick spoke again, after a good while of silence from his side, Sabrina had been worried he would feel left out, but he seemed fine.

“Yes! One of the less silly ones,” Sabrina agreed, munching on her salty-sweet popcorn.

“Truly terrifying. I can never keep a straight face during that one,” Harvey shivered, and Sabrina grazed his hand, finding his fear of fictional horrors endearing. “What if she hadn’t woken up?”

Her eyes twinkled at the visual, and her voice got a little louder. “No PMS jokes.”

“I wasn’t going to,” Harvey wrinkled his nose and shivered again, as Sabrina imagined the bloody image coming to life in his mind too. Perfect. She grinned.

A small, amused smile tugged at the corner of Nick’s lips. His eyes were shifting over the screen, taking in the blistering chases and delightful murders. But at hearing Harvey’s squirming Nick turned to Sabrina for a second, his trademark smirk gracing his features, mischief settled in his eyes like it had with hers, then he glanced past her. Whenever Nick was curious he would zero in on his newfound interest with a sharp and resilient focus, but there was a softness to the corner of his eyes. She saw it when he watched Harvey. Maybe he hadn’t always been joking. And for Nick to like Harvey, for Nick to see in Harvey what she saw in him, she couldn’t possibly mind that, could she? Sabrina decided she wouldn’t.

“Oh, look, there’s that crop top you _so_ did not buy after watching this movie the first time,” Sabrina teased Harvey some more, as the movie came to its end.

“I didn’t!”

“You _so_ didn’t. It just happens to be the same number, and color, and cut.”

Harvey shook his head, nudging her gently, as he reached for the popcorn that she was holding in her lap. Then he stuffed his mouth, choosing to not respond at all. Sabrina grinned again, pleased with riling him up, while the character on screen was gutted, blood and entrails spurting out of the bed he was lying on, washing the bedroom red.

“You’ve a crop top? _That_ crop top?” Nick asked as he rested on the armrest he shared with Sabrina, also no longer paying attention to the movie.

“Uhh, yeah,” Harvey said, rubbing the back of his neck. 

“Interesting… choice.” Nick looked at the screen again. “So, the hot guy dies? He was starting to grow on me, but what a way to go.”

“A horrible way,” Harvey added, averting his head from the screen.

Sabrina grinned. “Exactly.”

 

***

 

Their hang out didn’t end there. After the movies they somehow ended up at Nick’s place. It was a quiet ride in Harvey’s truck, quiet because her head was filled with the potential prospects. After somewhat of a rocky start, the three of them seemed to more or less find their groove. There was some joking, some teasing, all rather shallow but still fun. Both Harvey and Nick had even agreed to see the other Freddie movies, out of morbid curiosity. At least for Nick, since Harvey had seen them all with her. But that made it even better. It was only the first time they had hung out, and the goal was for them to get along. It seemed to be working. 

At Nick’s place, Harvey was given a tour of the surroundings just like Sabrina had the first time she visited. By now, more doors had opened to her, more than what Nick revealed during the first visit, but she was pretty certain there was more for her to explore. Nick retold magical histories of artifacts found in his home, and Harvey listened silently, attentively, just taking it in. It might have been more than she had ever told him. She didn’t care for history as much as him, but was more focused on the present. So, maybe Sabrina zoned out a little during the tour. It was her second time, anyway. When Nick got to his room, his arms spread out, a satisfied smile on his face. “This is where most of the magic happens when I’m at home.”

Sabrina peeked at Harvey, who had raised his eyebrows, and she tried to swallow her laughter, but failed. Bursting into laughters together with Harvey, she put her hand up at Nick apologetically. He didn’t understand. Why would he. It was a mortal thing. More than a year ago, Sabrina and Harvey were flipping the channels on the TV screen, when they stopped on MTV. Bored enough, they decided to give this show called _Cribs_ a try. During the program, celebrities showed the audience around their house, and whenever they would get to their bedroom each one of them would unimaginatively say _This is where the magic happens_ , obviously implying—

“Sex?” Nick asked, after Sabrina explained herself. “Mortals are so simpleminded.” Nick stepped closer to Sabrina, who was still chuckling, and Harvey scrutinized Nick’s room. “Though, I suppose since they don’t actually know or understand magic, their unsophisticated minds would naturally pick something as pleasurable as sex and call it magic.”

Harvey snorted. “If I’m hearing this right, and excuse my unsophisticated mind, but you’re saying you agree with us simpleminded mortals?”

“I don’t know. You tell me, mortal. You’ve had the privilege of being introduced to the world of magic. Would you compare it to sex?” Nick asked, as he tilted his head, inches away from Sabrina, and now openly taunting Harvey again, who had crossed his arms. They were doing so well mere minutes ago. What just happened?

Sabrina stepped forward, hands on her waist, blocking Nick’s path. “Anyways, you really know how to take the fun out of a good joke, Nick.”

“Yes, well…” Nick’s lashes lowered to her hands, then he pressed his body to hers, their lips brushing together. Surprised and naturally willing, Sabrina had responded instinctively, kissing him back for a moment, before her head got the best of her and she nudged him away. “What? Harvey got a kiss earlier.”

“Yes… but it’s not a competition,” Sabrina said, wrinkling her nose in confusion. 

Nick rolled his eyes, annoying her with his pointless attitude. “I know.”

“Sorry about that.” Sabrina turned to Harvey, who was a part of this just as much. They hadn’t set up ground rules, but surely Harvey didn’t enjoy seeing that… even if Nick was right, and Harvey had done the same earlier. But a ‘hello’ kiss was different from just a random one, right? “Nick, don’t you want to apologize to Harvey?”

“What? For kissing you?” Nick waved his hand, walking to his bed. “No. Never. Besides, it’s nothing he hasn’t seen before.”

“Well, it was different then,” Sabrina argued. 

“Really isn’t.” Harvey and Nick said in unison.

They stared at each other, silent tension hanging in the air, while Sabrina fidgeted with her hands, needing an explanation. Harvey cleared his throat, turning his gaze to Sabrina, and continued, “I mean, it’s just as uncomfortable to watch today as it was months ago.”

Nick ensconced himself on the foot of his bed, gesturing at Harvey. “See, I was merely trying to help the mortal get used to the visual.”

“You altruist,” Sabrina muttered.

“Indeed,” Nick quirked an eyebrow, then turned to Harvey. “You’re most welcome.”

Harvey bounced on a foot, his light brown eyes shifting between Sabrina and Nick, a confused smile suddenly appearing. “Tonight has been… so weird.” While his smile widened, Harvey put his hands in the pockets of his jean jacket. “And yet, it’s not the weirdest thing that’s happened in the last year.”

That remark was still on her mind later that night when Sabrina walked into her bedroom. Her head and heart were full of the two boys she had spent her day with. It hadn’t been a disaster. She was actually quite happy about the day. Sabrina was not willing to admit it just yet, not out loud anyway, but Harvey had been right. It wasn’t the weirdest thing any of them had gone through that year, and she was fortunate that she had two boyfriends who were willing to make an effort. Even when it was clear that this would not be a smooth transition… but they were trying.

They were all trying, and that was all she could ask for.

Two natures. Two worlds. Two boyfriends, Sabrina thought to herself as she removed the necklace she had been given by Harvey from her desk drawer, and wore it around her neck again. The golden jewelry glinted in the yellow light of her bedroom, its warm colors harmonizing with silver gleam of her vintage earrings. It had taken her some time, but Sabrina felt calm.

Together, the three of them could carry the weight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _Fin._ (Self-)indulgence brought to fanfic. Hope you enjoyed it. Thank you for reading.  
> Find me on [Tumblr](https://existentialmalaises.tumblr.com/).


End file.
